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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. lean — to bend
  5. bound — obliged
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. present — the time now
  8. rush — hurry
  9. wax — to grow
  10. present — there
  11. game — a match
  12. chest — of your body
  13. lean — thin
  14. game — wild animals
  15. bound — certain
  16. chest — a box
  17. present — a gift
  18. bound — tied together
  19. chest — of your body
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. lean — to rest against

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