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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. track — a path
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. spring — a coil
  5. tube — the underground
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. shower — to wash
  10. lean — to bend
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. spring — the season
  13. pass — a permit
  14. chair — a leader
  15. fall — to drop
  16. tube — a container
  17. fall — to drop
  18. track — to keep track
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. lean — thin
  21. spring — of water
  22. shower — rain
  23. fall — the season
  24. track — a song

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