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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 116 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bulb — for light
  4. rush — hurry
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. saw — the tool
  8. content — happy
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bulb — for light
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to bend
  17. branch — a division
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. field — farmland
  20. content — the amount
  21. field — for sport
  22. field — a subject
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. rush — to hurry

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