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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bound — certain
  4. staff — a stick
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. staff — employees
  7. staff — employees
  8. chip — to eat
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bound — obliged
  12. shower — rain
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. lean — thin
  15. face — to confront
  16. chip — for betting
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. lean — to bend
  19. bound — tied together
  20. face — part of the head
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. face — to point toward
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. wake — before a funeral

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