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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. spring — the season
  3. craft — boats
  4. game — a match
  5. spring — a coil
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — thin
  8. field — farmland
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. root — the cause
  11. root — of a plant
  12. field — for sport
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. craft — a skill
  15. field — a subject
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. kick — in football
  19. spring — of water
  20. root — of a word
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. wake — a trail

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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