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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: rule · lean · foot · mate · race · charge · row · chest

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. charge — a price
  3. rule — government
  4. mate — a friend
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. mate — to breed
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. race — humankind
  12. foot — a measure
  13. race — a contest
  14. charge — electricity
  15. rule — a law
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. race — the arms race
  18. row — to paddle
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. mate — a partner
  21. charge — in control
  22. row — a line
  23. chest — a box
  24. row — a quarrel

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