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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lean — thin
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — government
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. object — to protest
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. rash — hasty
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. rule — a law
  13. chest — a box
  14. rash — a series
  15. dip — to sink
  16. chest — of your body
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. wake — a trail
  19. object — an aim
  20. object — a thing
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — in cards

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