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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. object — to protest
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. object — an aim
  5. lean — to bend
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cold — an illness
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. snap — to click
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. chest — of your body
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — thin
  19. present — a gift
  20. rush — hurry
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. present — there
  23. cold — not warm
  24. object — a thing

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