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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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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: rush · lean · field · land · mug · cap · wake · prune

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — thin
  5. field — a subject
  6. wake — a trail
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. land — to come down
  9. cap — a hat
  10. land — ground
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. field — farmland
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. rush — hurry
  15. mug — a face
  16. field — for sport
  17. mug — a cup
  18. cap — a lid
  19. mug — to rob
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. land — a country
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. cap — of ice

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