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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. lean — to bend
  3. file — a tool
  4. can — a tin
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. field — farmland
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. sharp — clever
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — thin
  12. file — a document
  13. can — a tin
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — a weight
  16. field — a subject
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. field — for sport
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. can — to be able to

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