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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.

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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: wake · track · season · wave · field · snap · prune · bay

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. field — a subject
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. snap — to click
  8. field — farmland
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. track — a path
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. field — for sport
  14. season — of the year
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. track — to keep track
  17. wake — a trail
  18. track — a song
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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