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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  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. toast — the most admired
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. lean — to bend
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. club — for golf
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. club — for dancing
  8. lean — thin
  9. bank — for money
  10. tear — from crying
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bank — for money
  13. club — a group
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. toast — bread
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. bank — of a river
  22. tear — from crying
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  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