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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: date · mouse · wake · mug · field · pop · mate · saw

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. date — the fruit
  4. mug — a cup
  5. wake — a trail
  6. field — a subject
  7. mug — to rob
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. pop — to visit
  11. mate — to breed
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. mate — a partner
  15. field — for sport
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mug — a face
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. field — farmland
  24. pop — soda

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