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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. press — a publisher
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bound — tied together
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — for sport
  7. root — of a plant
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. press — newspapers
  10. field — a subject
  11. kick — in football
  12. bound — obliged
  13. press — to push
  14. root — of a word
  15. capital — a city
  16. bound — certain
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. root — the cause
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. capital — money
  23. lean — thin
  24. kick — with a leg

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