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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. pit — a hole
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. cold — an illness
  5. club — for dancing
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. pit — in a race
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. lean — thin
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. foot — a measure
  14. kick — in football
  15. cold — not warm
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. snap — to click
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. club — a group
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. club — for golf

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