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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  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. lean — thin
  2. field — for sport
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. season — in sport
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. season — of the year
  8. face — to confront
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. field — farmland
  11. mine — for digging
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. field — a subject
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. lean — to bend
  16. content — happy
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. face — to point toward
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. face — part of the head
  23. content — the amount
  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