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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mate — a partner
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — in sport
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pound — a weight
  10. season — of the year
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mate — to breed
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. game — wild animals
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. net — after costs
  20. season — in sport
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. game — a match
  23. mate — a friend
  24. pound — for dogs

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