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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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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: game · rush · foot · pitcher · last · field · lean · wake

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. lean — to bend
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. last — finally
  11. field — farmland
  12. wake — a trail
  13. last — final
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. field — for sport
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. game — wild animals
  18. foot — a measure
  19. rush — hurry
  20. last — to go on
  21. field — a subject
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. game — a match
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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