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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. sharp — clever
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. clip — to cut
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. content — the amount
  11. lean — thin
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. content — happy
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. clip — a video
  16. cell — a phone
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. lean — to bend
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. kick — in football
  22. clip — for paper
  23. plane — a tool
  24. cell — in biology

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