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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — farmland
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. swing — music
  7. prune — to trim
  8. swing — to play on
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. fine — all right
  11. lean — to bend
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. rule — government
  15. face — to point toward
  16. prune — to trim
  17. lean — thin
  18. face — to confront
  19. key — the most important part
  20. rule — a law
  21. field — for sport
  22. fine — high quality
  23. swing — in golf
  24. face — part of the head

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