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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. lean — thin
  3. dip — to sink
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. mine — for digging
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — of ice
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. fine — all right
  12. spell — magic
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. chair — a leader
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. spell — letters
  18. cap — a lid
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. spell — a short time
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. lean — to bend
  24. fine — high quality

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