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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. lean — to bend
  5. scale — size or range
  6. rest — a break
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. scale — in music
  10. row — to paddle
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — a hat
  13. cap — of ice
  14. rest — what's left
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. rash — hasty
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. lean — thin
  20. rest — what's left
  21. row — a line
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. rash — a series

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