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

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fine — high quality
  3. staff — a stick
  4. fine — all right
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fall — the season
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fall — to drop
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — a break
  11. bore — to tire
  12. branch — a division
  13. spring — of water
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. spring — the season
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. staff — employees
  20. spring — a coil
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. staff — employees
  23. bore — to drill
  24. coach — a trainer

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