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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. foot — a measure
  6. cap — of ice
  7. field — farmland
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. prune — to trim
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — in cards
  15. field — for sport
  16. field — a subject
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — a lid
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fine — all right
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. saw — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com