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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. rule — a law
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. lean — to bend
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. field — farmland
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. lean — thin
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. stock — goods
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chair — a leader
  19. stock — shares
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. rule — government
  24. bowl — a dish

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