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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 116 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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. field — farmland
  6. charge — a price
  7. charge — electricity
  8. field — for sport
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. field — a subject
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. lean — thin
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. kid — to tease
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. charge — in control
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. kid — child

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