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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 116 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: file · pound · field · land · prune · snap · bear · stock

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bear — the animal
  4. file — a line of people
  5. stock — shares
  6. pound — a weight
  7. snap — to click
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. land — ground
  10. file — a document
  11. bear — the animal
  12. field — farmland
  13. file — a tool
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. field — for sport
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. stock — goods
  18. prune — to trim
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. field — a subject
  22. land — to come down
  23. prune — to trim
  24. land — a country

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