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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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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: present · snap · field · cell · spell · prune · calf · date

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. prune — to trim
  5. field — farmland
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. present — a gift
  9. spell — a short time
  10. prune — to trim
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. field — for sport
  13. date — the fruit
  14. spell — letters
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. present — there
  18. spell — magic
  19. cell — a phone
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. field — a subject
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. calf — a young animal

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