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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. rock — music
  3. can — to be able to
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — a position
  7. lean — thin
  8. march — music
  9. field — a subject
  10. can — a tin
  11. march — the month
  12. lean — to bend
  13. can — a tin
  14. object — a thing
  15. present — the time now
  16. ground — the earth
  17. present — there
  18. object — an aim
  19. rock — a stone
  20. field — for sport
  21. present — a gift
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. march — the month
  24. field — farmland

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