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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. stock — goods
  5. last — final
  6. chip — to eat
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. last — finally
  10. board — a committee
  11. mine — for digging
  12. last — to go on
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. lean — thin
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. stock — shares
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. board — to get on
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. mine — belonging to me
  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