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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 120 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. fine — high quality
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. swing — to play on
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. fine — all right
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. tube — the underground
  11. game — a match
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to click
  14. tube — a container
  15. lean — to bend
  16. swing — in golf
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. lie — to recline
  19. swing — music
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. lean — thin

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