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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. tube — the underground
  3. lean — thin
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — a container
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. land — ground
  11. bear — the animal
  12. lie — to recline
  13. chest — of your body
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. land — to come down
  16. bear — the animal
  17. land — a country
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — a break
  22. chest — a box
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pass — a permit

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