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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. field — for sport
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. chair — a leader
  5. prune — to trim
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. wake — a trail
  10. field — farmland
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. deal — to handle
  13. march — music
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. field — a subject
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. prune — to trim
  19. march — the month
  20. pass — a permit
  21. march — the month
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. prune — the fruit

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