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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. court — of a king
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. court — for sport
  5. race — the arms race
  6. firm — a company
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. firm — steady
  9. rash — hasty
  10. lean — thin
  11. field — farmland
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. field — for sport
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. race — humankind
  17. court — of law
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. date — the fruit
  22. race — a contest
  23. firm — decided
  24. field — a subject

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