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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. lean — to bend
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. spell — letters
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. race — a contest
  10. spell — magic
  11. lean — thin
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. race — humankind
  14. field — farmland
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. row — a line
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. spell — a short time
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — the animal
  23. foot — a measure
  24. row — to paddle

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