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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. lean — to bend
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. pound — a weight
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. kick — in football
  13. branch — a division
  14. wax — to grow
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. ground — the earth
  20. lean — thin
  21. ground — a position
  22. ground — crushed
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. straw — dry grass

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