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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lean — to bend
  3. rest — a break
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. track — to keep track
  6. field — for sport
  7. pop — music
  8. pop — soda
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. track — a song
  12. field — a subject
  13. dip — to sink
  14. wound — an injury
  15. field — farmland
  16. fork — in a road
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. track — a path
  23. lean — thin
  24. pop — to visit

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