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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  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. bat — in an idiom
  2. track — a path
  3. rule — a law
  4. swing — music
  5. lean — to bend
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. field — a subject
  8. track — to keep track
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. field — for sport
  11. bat — the animal
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. row — to paddle
  15. field — farmland
  16. rule — government
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — a line
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. lean — thin
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — to play on
  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