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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. track — to keep track
  6. pop — to visit
  7. lean — to bend
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. pop — music
  13. content — happy
  14. track — a path
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. content — the amount
  17. rush — hurry
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. track — a song
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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