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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. lean — thin
  3. field — for sport
  4. land — a country
  5. pass — a permit
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bear — the animal
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. squash — to crush
  13. mark — a trace
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. field — a subject
  17. bear — the animal
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. mark — a grade
  20. lean — to bend
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. field — farmland

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