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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. present — there
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. present — the time now
  7. band — a ring
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. clip — for paper
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. lean — to bend
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. clip — to cut
  17. present — a gift
  18. lean — thin
  19. clip — a video
  20. shower — rain
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. shower — to wash
  23. plane — a tool
  24. band — a music group

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