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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 116 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — not warm
  5. squash — the sport
  6. fall — to drop
  7. lean — thin
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. fork — in a road
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. chip — to eat
  15. squash — to crush
  16. tube — the underground
  17. fall — the season
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. tube — a container
  20. cold — an illness
  21. fall — to drop
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. chip — for betting
  24. pass — a permit

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