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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lean — to bend
  3. face — to confront
  4. prune — to trim
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. lean — thin
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. capital — money
  10. prune — to trim
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. capital — a city
  13. object — to protest
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. object — a thing
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. object — an aim
  19. chair — a leader
  20. face — part of the head
  21. stem — to come from
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. face — to point toward
  24. safe — out of danger

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