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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. lie — to recline
  3. cell — in biology
  4. row — a line
  5. spring — a coil
  6. lean — thin
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. face — to confront
  10. row — to paddle
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. cell — a phone
  18. spring — the season
  19. face — part of the head
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. face — to point toward
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. lean — to bend

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