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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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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. bound — obliged
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. bound — certain
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. capital — a city
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. pitch — completely
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. stem — to come from
  13. lean — to bend
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. capital — money
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. bound — tied together
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. fork — in a road
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. fork — a garden tool

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