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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lean — thin
  3. last — final
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. toast — bread
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. cell — in biology
  9. last — to go on
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. can — to be able to
  12. hand — help
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. dip — to sink
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. can — a tin
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. last — finally
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. hand — in cards
  23. can — a tin
  24. cell — a phone

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