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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: straw · hand · current · club · mark · lean · stand · ground

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. club — for golf
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — help
  6. lean — thin
  7. lean — to bend
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. current — electric
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. ground — a position
  13. current — of water
  14. ground — the earth
  15. mark — a grade
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. mark — a trace
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. current — happening now
  21. ground — crushed
  22. stand — to bear
  23. club — for dancing
  24. club — a 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