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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: lean · capital · bulb · field · race · dip · pass · stock

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. capital — money
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. pass — a permit
  8. lean — thin
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bulb — for light
  11. field — a subject
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. capital — a city
  17. stock — goods
  18. field — for sport
  19. bulb — for light
  20. race — a contest
  21. field — farmland
  22. stock — shares
  23. race — humankind
  24. capital — a big letter

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