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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. spring — a coil
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. stand — to bear
  5. spring — the season
  6. lean — thin
  7. court — for sport
  8. branch — a division
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. court — of law
  12. court — of a king
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. wake — a trail
  15. mine — for digging
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. lean — to bend
  21. spring — of water
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. kick — in football

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