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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 116 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. field — for sport
  4. lean — thin
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. tear — to rip
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. snap — to click
  10. capital — money
  11. field — farmland
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cold — an illness
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. capital — a city
  19. field — a subject
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. tear — from crying
  23. lean — to bend
  24. cold — not warm

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