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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a leader
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. date — the fruit
  5. field — for sport
  6. march — the month
  7. field — a subject
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. lean — to bend
  10. current — happening now
  11. march — music
  12. deal — to handle
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. current — of water
  17. march — the month
  18. field — farmland
  19. lean — thin
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — of a plant
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. root — the cause
  24. current — electric

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