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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. ground — crushed
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. press — a publisher
  7. face — part of the head
  8. tear — from crying
  9. face — to point toward
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. lean — thin
  12. face — to confront
  13. tear — to rip
  14. cue — a hint
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cue — for pool
  18. press — newspapers
  19. lean — to bend
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — the earth
  22. press — to push
  23. cue — a signal
  24. lean — to rest against

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