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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. lean — to bend
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lean — thin
  6. rest — a break
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. hand — help
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. vault — a safe
  17. hand — in cards
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pass — a permit
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. rest — what's left
  24. racket — for tennis

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