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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: wound · straw · arm · bound · dip · spell · key · lean

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. bound — certain
  4. wound — an injury
  5. key — for a lock
  6. spell — letters
  7. bound — tied together
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spell — magic
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. lean — thin
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. key — the most important part
  16. bound — obliged
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wound — an injury
  19. key — in music
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. spell — a short time
  24. straw — dry grass

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