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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. lean — thin
  4. rash — a series
  5. saw — the tool
  6. pit — in a race
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pit — a hole
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bound — certain
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. branch — a division
  19. rash — hasty
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bound — obliged
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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