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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lean — thin
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. suit — to fit
  8. perch — the fish
  9. rest — a break
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. suit — clothes
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — to cut
  16. field — for sport
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. suit — in cards
  19. rest — what's left
  20. field — a subject
  21. rest — what's left
  22. field — farmland
  23. clip — a video
  24. row — a line

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