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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. field — for sport
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. rash — a series
  5. saw — the tool
  6. prune — to trim
  7. field — a subject
  8. pop — music
  9. rash — hasty
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. pop — to visit
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. fork — in a road
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. pop — soda
  17. sharp — clever
  18. saw — the tool
  19. prune — to trim
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. field — farmland
  24. ball — a dance

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