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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. lean — to bend
  3. saw — the tool
  4. march — the month
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. march — the month
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. plane — a tool
  10. stand — to bear
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. rash — a series
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cold — an illness
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. march — music
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. rash — hasty
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. lean — thin

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