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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 120 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: lie · pound · field · foot · prune · ruler · snap · last

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. last — finally
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. field — a subject
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. prune — to trim
  12. foot — a measure
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. last — final
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. last — to go on
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. pound — a weight
  20. field — for sport
  21. snap — to click
  22. prune — to trim
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. lie — to recline

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