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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. band — a music group
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. season — of the year
  12. band — a ring
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. lean — thin
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. lean — to bend
  21. season — in sport
  22. sharp — clever
  23. stand — to bear
  24. branch — a division

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