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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. rule — a law
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. press — to push
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lean — to bend
  8. rule — government
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. track — to keep track
  11. wind — moving air
  12. stem — to come from
  13. track — a song
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. track — a path
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. lean — thin

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