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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. press — a publisher
  6. foot — a measure
  7. saw — the tool
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. rash — a series
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. press — newspapers
  14. march — the month
  15. field — for sport
  16. lean — thin
  17. rash — hasty
  18. swing — to play on
  19. field — a subject
  20. swing — in golf
  21. field — farmland
  22. press — to push
  23. saw — the tool
  24. swing — music

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