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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bore · field · clip · press · stick · season · lean · race

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lean — to bend
  3. race — a contest
  4. clip — for paper
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. clip — to cut
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. field — for sport
  10. race — humankind
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. season — in sport
  13. press — to push
  14. field — a subject
  15. press — a publisher
  16. lean — thin
  17. race — the arms race
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bore — to drill
  20. season — of the year
  21. clip — a video
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bore — gave birth
  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