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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. stock — goods
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rash — a series
  5. prune — to trim
  6. lean — thin
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. stock — shares
  9. bass — low music
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. prune — to trim
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. face — part of the head
  14. field — farmland
  15. rash — hasty
  16. face — to confront
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bound — certain
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bound — tied together

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