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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: scale · pound · mate · field · prune · clip · ball · fan

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. ball — a dance
  3. field — a subject
  4. mate — a friend
  5. prune — to trim
  6. ball — a great time
  7. scale — in music
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. clip — to cut
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. clip — for paper
  12. scale — size or range
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. field — farmland
  15. mate — to breed
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. mate — a partner
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. field — for sport
  22. clip — a video
  23. pound — a weight
  24. fan — a supporter

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