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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 120 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. capital — money
  3. object — an aim
  4. object — a thing
  5. face — to confront
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. face — part of the head
  8. court — of a king
  9. face — to point toward
  10. capital — a city
  11. lean — to bend
  12. cell — a phone
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. court — of law
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. cell — in biology
  19. court — for sport
  20. mine — for digging
  21. object — to protest
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. capital — a big letter

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