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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bass — the fish
  3. prune — to trim
  4. file — a line of people
  5. chip — to eat
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. track — a song
  8. chip — for betting
  9. file — a tool
  10. prune — to trim
  11. field — a subject
  12. file — a document
  13. present — a gift
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. track — a path
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. track — to keep track
  19. present — the time now
  20. field — for sport
  21. bass — low music
  22. bear — the animal
  23. field — farmland
  24. present — there

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