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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. fall — the season
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. chair — a leader
  7. field — for sport
  8. fall — to drop
  9. field — a subject
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. net — after costs
  12. net — in sport
  13. fall — to drop
  14. net — for catching
  15. rash — a series
  16. fork — in a road
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. field — farmland
  20. lean — to bend
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. lean — thin
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. lean — to rest against

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