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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: stick · straw · cabinet · spring · calf · plane · cell · lean

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. plane — a tool
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. spring — of water
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in biology
  12. spring — a coil
  13. lean — thin
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. spring — the season
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. lean — to bend
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. calf — a young animal

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