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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. staff — employees
  3. field — farmland
  4. face — to confront
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. staff — a stick
  7. suit — in cards
  8. suit — to fit
  9. cell — a phone
  10. wake — a trail
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. face — to point toward
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. cell — in biology
  16. field — a subject
  17. face — part of the head
  18. bulb — for light
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. field — for sport
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. staff — employees
  24. bulb — for light

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