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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a partner
  3. key — in music
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. field — for sport
  6. mate — a friend
  7. net — in sport
  8. prune — to trim
  9. clip — to cut
  10. field — farmland
  11. key — the most important part
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. prune — to trim
  14. clip — a video
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. stand — to bear
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. field — a subject
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — for catching
  22. key — for a lock
  23. snap — to click
  24. clip — for paper

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