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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. fine — high quality
  3. field — for sport
  4. track — a path
  5. lean — thin
  6. track — to keep track
  7. lean — to bend
  8. snap — to click
  9. field — a subject
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. track — a song
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. field — farmland
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — to breed
  18. shower — rain
  19. fine — all right
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. ground — the earth

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