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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 ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. swing — to play on
  4. lean — thin
  5. swing — music
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. cue — a hint
  8. lie — to recline
  9. sharp — clever
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cold — not warm
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. lean — to bend
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. prune — to trim
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. cue — a signal
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cold — an illness
  23. swing — in golf
  24. straw — a straw man

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