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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. object — an aim
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — a series
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. rest — what's left
  7. spring — of water
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a ring
  10. rest — what's left
  11. object — to protest
  12. object — a thing
  13. spring — the season
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. spring — a coil
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. rest — a break
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bark — to shout
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. band — a music group

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