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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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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: face · fall · pound · chair · fine · file · bat · lean

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pound — a weight
  4. fall — the season
  5. lean — to bend
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. file — a line of people
  8. lean — thin
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. face — part of the head
  11. file — a tool
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fall — to drop
  15. face — to point toward
  16. fine — high quality
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. face — to confront
  20. chair — a leader
  21. file — a document
  22. bat — the animal
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. fine — all right

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