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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. lean — to bend
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. current — of water
  11. lean — thin
  12. kick — in football
  13. current — happening now
  14. mark — a trace
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pitch — completely
  20. current — electric
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. mark — a grade

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