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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. press — to push
  3. field — farmland
  4. object — to protest
  5. lean — thin
  6. field — a subject
  7. spring — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. firm — decided
  11. object — an aim
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — a publisher
  14. firm — steady
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a great time
  17. spring — the season
  18. field — for sport
  19. spring — a coil
  20. lean — to bend
  21. firm — a company
  22. current — of water
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. object — a thing

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