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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. field — farmland
  5. foot — a measure
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. race — a contest
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. race — humankind
  12. spell — a short time
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. prune — to trim
  15. field — for sport
  16. spell — letters
  17. last — finally
  18. field — a subject
  19. race — the arms race
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. spell — magic

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