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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. date — the fruit
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. fall — the season
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — a phone
  8. fall — to drop
  9. lean — to bend
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. shower — to wash
  12. mug — a face
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mug — to rob
  15. lean — thin
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. mug — a cup
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bound — certain
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. shower — rain
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. lean — to rest against

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