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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. capital — a city
  3. row — to paddle
  4. band — a ring
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. lean — to bend
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. band — a music group
  9. root — the cause
  10. vault — a safe
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. lean — thin
  14. capital — money
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. root — of a word
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. row — a line
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. root — of a plant

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