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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 120 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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. rash — a series
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. prune — to trim
  5. shower — rain
  6. pop — to visit
  7. field — farmland
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pop — soda
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. field — a subject
  12. prune — to trim
  13. shower — to wash
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. rash — hasty
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pop — music
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. field — for sport
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. foot — a measure
  24. rash — on the skin

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