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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. prune — to trim
  11. shower — to wash
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. scale — size or range
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. shower — rain
  18. prune — to trim
  19. key — the most important part
  20. key — for a lock
  21. field — for sport
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. key — in music
  24. mine — for digging

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