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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. object — an aim
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. field — farmland
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — a trail
  10. sharp — clever
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. object — to protest
  14. field — for sport
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. field — a subject
  17. object — a thing
  18. prune — to trim
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. rush — hurry
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. sharp — with an edge

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