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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've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. field — farmland
  3. lean — thin
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. field — a subject
  6. spell — magic
  7. content — happy
  8. field — for sport
  9. wake — a trail
  10. lean — to bend
  11. squash — the sport
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. content — the amount
  14. bulb — for light
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. spell — letters
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — to crush
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. bulb — for light

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