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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: dip · safe · shower · ground · prune · date · field · mate

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. field — farmland
  4. prune — to trim
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. dip — to sink
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. ground — a position
  10. date — the fruit
  11. ground — crushed
  12. shower — to wash
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mate — a partner
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. ground — the earth
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. shower — rain
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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