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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. fall — to drop
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — for catching
  5. fall — the season
  6. charge — a price
  7. ground — a position
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. ground — crushed
  13. net — after costs
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wake — a trail
  16. charge — electricity
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying

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