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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 124 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. craft — boats
  5. cold — not warm
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. fall — the season
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. branch — a division
  16. lean — thin
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. craft — a skill
  20. cold — an illness
  21. sharp — clever
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. fall — to drop

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