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

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. key — the most important part
  5. cap — a hat
  6. saw — the tool
  7. net — for catching
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. net — after costs
  11. staff — employees
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. key — for a lock
  16. mine — for digging
  17. saw — the tool
  18. net — in sport
  19. staff — a stick
  20. key — in music
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. staff — employees
  23. cap — of ice
  24. lean — to bend

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