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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: stand · chair · lean · key · sharp · pop · land · bat

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. key — the most important part
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. pop — soda
  5. pop — music
  6. key — for a lock
  7. sharp — clever
  8. land — ground
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. lean — thin
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — the animal
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. land — a country
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. pop — to visit
  22. lean — to bend
  23. chair — a leader
  24. key — in music

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