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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. spell — letters
  3. field — a subject
  4. branch — a division
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wax — to grow
  7. spell — a short time
  8. charge — in control
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. fall — the season
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. charge — a price
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. fall — to drop
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. track — to keep track
  17. charge — electricity
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. fall — to drop
  20. field — for sport
  21. track — a song
  22. field — farmland
  23. spell — magic
  24. track — a path

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