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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 124 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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. file — a document
  3. spell — magic
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mate — to breed
  6. club — for golf
  7. field — for sport
  8. spell — letters
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — to be able to
  11. field — a subject
  12. prune — to trim
  13. can — a tin
  14. mate — a friend
  15. field — farmland
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. file — a tool
  18. mate — a partner
  19. spell — a short time
  20. club — a group
  21. file — a line of people
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. club — for dancing

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