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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. rock — music
  4. foot — a measure
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. mine — for digging
  7. date — the fruit
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. lean — thin
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. field — farmland
  15. pass — a permit
  16. drill — a practice
  17. rock — a stone
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — army training
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. foot — the bottom

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