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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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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: land · field · rest · kick · wound · arm · rule · lean

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. land — to come down
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. land — ground
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. field — for sport
  8. rest — what's left
  9. kick — in football
  10. rule — government
  11. lean — to bend
  12. wound — an injury
  13. field — a subject
  14. land — a country
  15. rule — a law
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. lean — thin
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. rest — what's left
  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