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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cap — a lid
  3. march — the month
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. lean — to bend
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. sharp — clever
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. march — music
  14. bound — obliged
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. march — the month
  19. mine — for digging
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bound — certain
  24. lean — to rest against

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