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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. fine — high quality
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — a leader
  6. pass — a permit
  7. lean — thin
  8. cell — in biology
  9. fine — all right
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wax — to grow
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. tear — to rip
  19. lean — to bend
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. cell — a phone
  24. pass — to spend time

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