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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. field — farmland
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. march — music
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cell — a phone
  11. field — for sport
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. field — a subject
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. branch — a division
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. lean — thin
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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