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

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bulb — for light
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. plane — a tool
  9. roll — a cake
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. bulb — for light
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. roll — a list
  15. kick — in football
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. hand — help

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