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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lean — thin
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bat — the animal
  7. kick — in football
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. rash — hasty
  11. lean — to bend
  12. present — a gift
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. sharp — clever
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. present — there
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. present — the time now
  23. rash — a series
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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