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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 124 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. swing — music
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. drill — a practice
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. net — in sport
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. net — for catching
  10. lean — thin
  11. drill — the tool
  12. lean — to bend
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — to play on
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. bat — the animal
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. net — after costs
  21. drill — army training
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. mine — for digging

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