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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. staff — employees
  4. bound — tied together
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. rule — government
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wind — moving air
  11. rule — a law
  12. staff — a stick
  13. staff — employees
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. bound — certain
  16. cell — in biology
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. lean — thin
  20. bound — obliged
  21. sharp — clever
  22. cell — a phone
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. sharp — exactly

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