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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ground — crushed
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. ground — a position
  5. prune — to trim
  6. pass — a permit
  7. ball — a dance
  8. pop — to visit
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. field — a subject
  13. ground — the earth
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pop — music
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. field — for sport
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. season — of the year
  22. pop — soda
  23. season — in sport
  24. ball — a great time

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