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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. lean — thin
  7. roll — a list
  8. chest — a box
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. branch — a division
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. craft — a skill
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. roll — a cake
  18. craft — boats
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. stem — to come from
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. rash — a series

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