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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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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: stand · plane · present · wake · prune · field · snap · rule

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. prune — to trim
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wake — a trail
  13. rule — a law
  14. present — there
  15. rule — government
  16. field — farmland
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. snap — to click
  19. field — a subject
  20. present — a gift
  21. field — for sport
  22. prune — to trim
  23. present — the time now
  24. plane — a tool

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