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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. tube — the underground
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — in biology
  5. sharp — clever
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. game — wild animals
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bear — the animal
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. bear — the animal
  13. season — of the year
  14. lean — to bend
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. cell — a phone
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. tube — a container
  20. lean — thin
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. game — a match

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