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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rule — government
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. rule — a law
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. object — a thing
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bat — the animal
  12. object — an aim
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. object — to protest
  18. mate — to breed
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. mate — a partner
  22. lean — to bend
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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