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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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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: wake · tear · lie · lean · chip · chair · rest · game

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. chip — to eat
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. lean — thin
  8. rest — a break
  9. chip — for betting
  10. lean — to bend
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. game — a match
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. rest — what's left
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. rest — what's left
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. wake — a trail
  22. tear — to rip
  23. lie — to recline
  24. wake — before a funeral

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