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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  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. lean — to rest against
  2. fine — all right
  3. staff — employees
  4. mark — a trace
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. lean — to bend
  8. mark — a grade
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. chip — for betting
  11. fine — high quality
  12. staff — a stick
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bat — the animal
  15. date — the fruit
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. lean — thin
  18. staff — employees
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. kid — child
  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