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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. spell — letters
  3. board — a committee
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. fall — the season
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. row — a line
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. fall — to drop
  12. board — to get on
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fall — to drop
  16. spell — a short time
  17. bulb — for light
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. lean — thin
  22. bulb — for light
  23. row — to paddle
  24. spell — magic

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