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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. rest — what's left
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. wind — moving air
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. lean — to bend
  9. rest — a break
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. land — ground
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. lean — thin
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wind — moving air
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. land — a country
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. land — to come down
  22. kick — in football
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. lean — to rest against

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