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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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Word bank
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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. cold — not warm
  4. lean — to bend
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. pound — a weight
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bear — the animal
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. ball — a dance
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — farmland
  23. rest — what's left
  24. cold — the Cold War

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