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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. season — in sport
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. ground — crushed
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. season — of the year
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. ground — a position
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. lean — thin
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. branch — a division
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. ground — the earth
  24. net — after costs

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