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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. tube — a container
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. net — in sport
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. spring — a coil
  11. deal — to handle
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. cold — not warm
  15. spring — of water
  16. tube — the underground
  17. rush — hurry
  18. lean — thin
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. spring — the season
  21. net — for catching
  22. lean — to bend
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. net — after costs

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