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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: mouse · cell · kid · face · spring · pass · lean · clip

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — thin
  6. face — to point toward
  7. pass — a permit
  8. face — part of the head
  9. cell — in biology
  10. kid — child
  11. clip — a video
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. spring — a coil
  14. face — to confront
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. kid — to tease
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cell — a phone

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