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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. band — a music group
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — a thing
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to click
  7. object — an aim
  8. bound — certain
  9. scale — in music
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — in biology
  12. bound — obliged
  13. saw — the tool
  14. lean — to bend
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. band — a ring
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bound — tied together
  21. scale — size or range
  22. cell — a phone
  23. lean — thin
  24. saw — the tool

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