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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. lean — thin
  3. field — for sport
  4. prune — to trim
  5. content — happy
  6. field — a subject
  7. content — the amount
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. field — farmland
  10. wound — an injury
  11. staff — employees
  12. rash — a series
  13. prune — to trim
  14. rush — hurry
  15. staff — employees
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. rash — hasty
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. staff — a stick
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. lean — to bend
  24. content — videos and posts

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