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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 120 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. field — a subject
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — thin
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. field — farmland
  7. board — to get on
  8. wake — a trail
  9. can — a tin
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. mark — a trace
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. board — a committee
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. field — for sport
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. can — a tin
  18. capital — money
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. mark — a grade
  21. can — to be able to
  22. capital — a city
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. cabinet — ministers

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