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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — child
  4. last — to go on
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. race — humankind
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — in biology
  12. lean — to bend
  13. cell — a phone
  14. last — final
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. race — a contest
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. race — the arms race
  19. stock — goods
  20. last — finally
  21. stock — shares
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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