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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. content — happy
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. tear — to rip
  5. club — a group
  6. field — a subject
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. field — for sport
  10. lean — thin
  11. content — the amount
  12. tear — from crying
  13. field — farmland
  14. club — for dancing
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lean — to bend
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — a phone
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. pass — a permit
  23. club — for golf
  24. pass — to spend time

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