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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lean — to bend
  4. rash — a series
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. fall — the season
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. lean — thin
  9. cold — an illness
  10. rash — hasty
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. staff — employees
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cold — not warm
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. band — a music group
  18. band — a ring
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. staff — employees
  24. wound — an injury

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