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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. capital — a city
  3. ground — the earth
  4. tear — to rip
  5. lean — thin
  6. craft — a skill
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. mug — a face
  9. capital — money
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ground — a position
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. spring — the season
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. spring — a coil
  17. ground — crushed
  18. lean — to bend
  19. spring — of water
  20. mug — to rob
  21. craft — boats
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. mug — a cup
  24. capital — a big letter

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