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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. fine — high quality
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bear — the animal
  9. court — of law
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bear — the animal
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. tube — a container
  14. kick — in football
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. court — for sport
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. wind — moving air
  20. court — of a king
  21. lean — to bend
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. fine — all right
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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