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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. last — to go on
  3. bore — to tire
  4. prune — to trim
  5. present — the time now
  6. field — a subject
  7. face — part of the head
  8. present — a gift
  9. bear — the animal
  10. present — there
  11. face — to point toward
  12. last — finally
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bore — to drill
  16. last — final
  17. track — a song
  18. track — a path
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. face — to confront
  21. field — farmland
  22. track — to keep track
  23. bear — the animal
  24. field — for sport

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