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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a leader
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. bound — certain
  14. wake — a trail
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. march — music
  17. lean — thin
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — tied together
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. lean — to bend

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