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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. pound — a weight
  3. field — farmland
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. firm — a company
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. band — a ring
  8. firm — decided
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. prune — to trim
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. band — a music group
  13. firm — steady
  14. rock — a stone
  15. court — of law
  16. prune — to trim
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. field — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. rock — music
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. prune — the fruit

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