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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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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: hide · spell · prune · chest · leaves · straw · hand · lean

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. hand — in cards
  4. hand — help
  5. chest — a box
  6. prune — to trim
  7. lean — thin
  8. chest — of your body
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. lean — to bend
  13. spell — magic
  14. spell — a short time
  15. chest — of your body
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. prune — to trim
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. spell — letters
  24. leaves — 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