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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 116 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. file — a line of people
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. lean — to bend
  8. capital — money
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. mine — for digging
  12. file — a tool
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. suit — clothes
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rock — a stone
  17. suit — to fit
  18. file — a document
  19. prune — to trim
  20. capital — a city
  21. prune — to trim
  22. suit — in cards
  23. rock — music
  24. wind — moving air

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