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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. lean — thin
  4. ground — the earth
  5. file — a tool
  6. chair — a leader
  7. ground — a position
  8. file — a line of people
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. file — a document
  11. lean — to bend
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cell — in biology
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. ground — crushed
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mine — for digging
  24. lean — to rest against

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