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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mine · lean · rest · season · snap · firm · bark · last

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. firm — decided
  3. mine — for digging
  4. firm — steady
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. lean — to bend
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. snap — to click
  11. last — finally
  12. season — in sport
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. season — of the year
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. last — final
  19. rest — a break
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. firm — a company
  22. lean — thin
  23. last — to go on
  24. bark — of a tree

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