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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 120 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chip — to eat
  4. lean — to bend
  5. current — happening now
  6. tube — the underground
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. chest — a box
  11. current — electric
  12. pass — a permit
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. current — of water
  15. tube — a container
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chip — for betting
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. wind — moving air
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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