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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cap — of ice
  3. board — a committee
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. scale — size or range
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. kid — child
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. kid — to tease
  13. rest — what's left
  14. scale — in music
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cap — a hat
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. rest — a break
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. lean — to bend
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. rest — what's left
  24. board — to get on

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