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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 116 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lie — to recline
  5. file — a line of people
  6. spring — a coil
  7. march — music
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lean — thin
  10. file — a document
  11. land — to come down
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. rest — what's left
  18. file — a tool
  19. land — a country
  20. spring — the season
  21. rest — a break
  22. march — the month
  23. spring — of water
  24. land — ground

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