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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. tear — from crying
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. chair — a leader
  6. lean — thin
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. wound — an injury
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chip — for betting
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stand — to bear
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. tear — to rip
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. chip — to eat
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. safe — out of danger

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