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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. dip — to sink
  3. cold — not warm
  4. chest — of your body
  5. field — a subject
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. chest — a box
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cold — an illness
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. object — to protest
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. object — an aim
  20. field — for sport
  21. object — a thing
  22. lean — thin
  23. field — farmland
  24. lean — to bend

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