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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. fall — the season
  3. wake — a trail
  4. capital — money
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. spell — magic
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. fall — to drop
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. spell — letters
  16. row — a line
  17. capital — a city
  18. fall — to drop
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. lean — thin
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. spell — a short time

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