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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. lean — to bend
  4. pit — a hole
  5. kick — in football
  6. wake — a trail
  7. swing — music
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. bat — the animal
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pop — to visit
  14. lean — thin
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. swing — in golf
  19. wax — to grow
  20. swing — to play on
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. pop — soda
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pop — music

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