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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mark · racket · fine · field · cold · straw · trunk · lean

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. field — a subject
  5. fine — high quality
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. lean — thin
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. mark — a grade
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. field — for sport
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. lean — to bend
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. field — farmland
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. mark — a trace
  23. fine — all right
  24. trunk — of a tree

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