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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — to grow
  9. content — happy
  10. lean — to bend
  11. saw — the tool
  12. spring — of water
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. spring — a coil
  17. content — the amount
  18. cell — in biology
  19. spring — the season
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. deal — to handle
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. cell — a phone

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