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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cell — a phone
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. lean — to bend
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. stock — shares
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. dip — to sink
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. cell — in biology
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. field — a subject
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. stock — goods
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cabinet — ministers

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