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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lean — to bend
  3. ball — a dance
  4. land — to come down
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. land — ground
  8. press — to push
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. pound — a weight
  12. press — a publisher
  13. lean — thin
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. pop — music
  17. ball — a great time
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. pop — to visit
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wake — a trail
  23. pop — soda
  24. land — a country

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