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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ground — a position
  12. craft — boats
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. march — music
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. rash — a series
  17. ground — crushed
  18. wound — an injury
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. ground — the earth
  21. craft — a skill
  22. rash — hasty
  23. lean — thin
  24. pit — in a race

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