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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — music
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. lean — to bend
  5. chair — a leader
  6. field — a subject
  7. lean — thin
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — to be able to
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. pop — soda
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — the tool
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. field — for sport
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. face — to point toward
  19. can — a tin
  20. face — to confront
  21. drill — a practice
  22. field — farmland
  23. face — part of the head
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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