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

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. press — a publisher
  4. lean — to bend
  5. root — of a plant
  6. root — the cause
  7. plane — a tool
  8. board — to get on
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. press — newspapers
  12. current — happening now
  13. press — to push
  14. root — of a word
  15. field — a subject
  16. capital — a city
  17. current — electric
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. field — for sport
  21. board — a committee
  22. current — of water
  23. lean — thin
  24. plane — in geometry

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