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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. fine — all right
  4. lean — to bend
  5. fall — to drop
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. wind — moving air
  9. band — a ring
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. fall — the season
  18. lean — thin
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. band — a music group
  22. fine — high quality
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — a straw man

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