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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: mouse · wind · fall · net · snap · mine · lean · fine

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. fine — all right
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. lean — to bend
  12. fall — the season
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mine — for digging
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — moving air
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. fine — high quality
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — for catching
  22. fall — to drop
  23. lean — thin
  24. net — in sport

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