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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 120 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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. field — for sport
  3. lean — thin
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. hand — in cards
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. press — to push
  9. hand — help
  10. field — farmland
  11. lean — to bend
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — an illness
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. press — a publisher
  16. saw — the tool
  17. field — a subject
  18. craft — a skill
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. craft — boats
  21. press — newspapers
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. cold — the Cold War

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