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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. field — farmland
  3. pop — to visit
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. rule — a law
  11. pit — in a race
  12. mark — a trace
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. rule — government
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. pop — music
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — for sport
  20. pop — soda
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. mark — a grade
  24. lean — thin

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