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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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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: cap · race · leaves · kid · prune · field · object · saw

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cap — a lid
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. object — to protest
  6. object — an aim
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. cap — of ice
  9. field — a subject
  10. object — a thing
  11. kid — to tease
  12. race — the arms race
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. race — humankind
  15. cap — a hat
  16. field — for sport
  17. saw — the tool
  18. kid — child
  19. saw — the tool
  20. prune — to trim
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. race — a contest
  23. prune — to trim
  24. leaves — of a tree

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