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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 120 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 usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. lean — to bend
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. present — there
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. file — a line of people
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. fork — in a road
  12. file — a tool
  13. stem — to come from
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. lean — thin
  16. field — farmland
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. present — the time now
  20. field — a subject
  21. file — a document
  22. field — for sport
  23. present — a gift
  24. patient — a sick person

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