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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: snap · lean · leaves · straw · kid · wind · cap · suit

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. wind — moving air
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. kid — to tease
  6. lean — to bend
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. cap — a hat
  9. suit — to fit
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cap — a lid
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. lean — thin
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cap — of ice
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. suit — in cards
  23. snap — to click
  24. suit — clothes

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