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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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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. spell — magic
  6. pit — a hole
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. game — wild animals
  11. spell — a short time
  12. lean — thin
  13. sharp — clever
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. game — a match
  17. spell — letters
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. pit — in a race
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. tear — to rip

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