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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. lean — thin
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — a video
  5. bank — for money
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bank — for money
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bank — of a river
  15. lean — to bend
  16. clip — to cut
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. chest — a box
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. pound — a weight
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — for spectators

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