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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. scale — size or range
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. object — to protest
  9. stock — shares
  10. field — for sport
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. stock — goods
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chair — a leader
  16. scale — in music
  17. object — an aim
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. object — a thing
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — farmland
  24. prune — to trim

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