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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. lean — to bend
  3. chest — of your body
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. charge — in control
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. lean — thin
  9. chest — a box
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. tube — a container
  14. charge — electricity
  15. chest — of your body
  16. band — a ring
  17. wake — a trail
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. charge — a price
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. band — a music group

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