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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. field — for sport
  3. mug — a cup
  4. shower — rain
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. mug — a face
  12. mate — a partner
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. prune — to trim
  20. field — a subject
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. field — farmland
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mate — a friend

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