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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. key — in music
  3. lean — to bend
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. mate — a friend
  6. spell — magic
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. spell — letters
  9. mate — a partner
  10. field — farmland
  11. snap — to click
  12. key — for a lock
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. spell — a short time
  16. key — the most important part
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. mate — to breed
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. foot — a measure
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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