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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. field — a subject
  3. rest — what's left
  4. pop — to visit
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. clip — for paper
  7. field — for sport
  8. rest — a break
  9. charge — electricity
  10. lean — to bend
  11. pop — music
  12. clip — a video
  13. deal — to handle
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. clip — to cut
  16. pop — soda
  17. charge — a price
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. rest — what's left
  21. charge — in control
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. field — farmland
  24. deal — an agreement

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