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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. bark — to shout
  3. lean — thin
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. cell — in biology
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. ground — crushed
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. ground — the earth
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. capital — money
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. ball — a dance
  19. rush — hurry
  20. ground — a position
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. ball — a great time
  23. lean — to bend
  24. fan — to cool the 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