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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
468
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: key · pop · kick · prune · leaves · mug · cell · field

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mug — a cup
  6. key — for a lock
  7. kick — in football
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. key — in music
  10. cell — in biology
  11. field — a subject
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. pop — to visit
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. mug — a face
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — for sport
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pop — soda
  21. mug — to rob
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. pop — music

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