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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. race — the arms race
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bass — the fish
  7. field — a subject
  8. lean — to bend
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. race — humankind
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. row — to paddle
  13. tube — a container
  14. field — farmland
  15. lean — thin
  16. field — for sport
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — a line
  21. bass — low music
  22. race — a contest
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. pitch — completely

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