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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. spell — letters
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — a short time
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a ring
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. staff — a stick
  10. lean — thin
  11. staff — employees
  12. pass — a permit
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. game — wild animals
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. game — a match
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. staff — employees

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