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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. net — in sport
  3. object — a thing
  4. wake — a trail
  5. field — farmland
  6. cap — of ice
  7. net — after costs
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cap — a hat
  10. field — a subject
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rash — hasty
  15. object — to protest
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. net — for catching
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. field — for sport
  20. rash — a series
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. scale — size or range
  23. object — an aim
  24. cap — a lid

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