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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 120 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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. bank — for money
  4. season — in sport
  5. chest — of your body
  6. file — a tool
  7. lean — to bend
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bank — of a river
  10. pitch — completely
  11. season — of the year
  12. bank — for money
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. file — a line of people
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wind — moving air
  21. chest — of your body
  22. lean — thin
  23. chest — a box
  24. file — a document

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