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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 ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. field — for sport
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bulb — for light
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. shower — rain
  8. lean — thin
  9. wind — moving air
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. field — a subject
  12. shower — to wash
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. roll — a list
  15. roll — a cake
  16. field — farmland
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. track — to keep track
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. lean — to bend
  21. wind — moving air
  22. track — a path
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. track — a song

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