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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. field — a subject
  4. lean — thin
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. spell — magic
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — the fruit
  9. field — farmland
  10. mark — a grade
  11. spell — letters
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. mark — a trace
  17. field — for sport
  18. lean — to bend

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