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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 116 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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. sharp — clever
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mark — a grade
  5. pop — music
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. field — for sport
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. cold — not warm
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. chair — a leader
  15. field — a subject
  16. cold — an illness
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. lean — thin
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. field — farmland
  21. pop — soda
  22. lean — to bend
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pop — to visit

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