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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 120 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. club — for dancing
  4. staff — employees
  5. club — for golf
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. kid — child
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. pit — a hole
  12. land — ground
  13. pit — in a race
  14. staff — a stick
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. land — to come down
  17. kid — to tease
  18. land — a country
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. club — a group
  22. staff — employees
  23. lean — thin
  24. fan — a supporter

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