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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. chest — of your body
  3. lean — thin
  4. bear — the animal
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. cap — a hat
  7. net — in sport
  8. field — a subject
  9. net — for catching
  10. cap — of ice
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. field — for sport
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. cap — a lid
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. field — farmland
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. chest — a box
  21. net — after costs
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. fan — to cool the air

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