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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. rest — a break
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. vault — a safe
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. lean — thin
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. stand — to bear
  9. cold — not warm
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. tube — a container
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. branch — a division
  19. rest — what's left
  20. tube — the underground
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. rest — what's left
  24. tube — in a tire

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