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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. present — a gift
  3. game — wild animals
  4. file — a document
  5. lean — to bend
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. file — a line of people
  8. season — of the year
  9. mug — a face
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. file — a tool
  12. mug — to rob
  13. game — a match
  14. present — the time now
  15. season — in sport
  16. present — there
  17. mug — a cup
  18. lean — thin

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