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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 116 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. net — for catching
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — letters
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. bear — the animal
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. field — farmland
  9. net — after costs
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. march — the month
  13. net — in sport
  14. bear — the animal
  15. prune — to trim
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. spell — magic
  19. march — music
  20. field — for sport
  21. mine — for digging
  22. field — a subject
  23. bank — for money
  24. prune — to trim

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