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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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468
Word bank
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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. chest — a box
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. lie — to recline
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chest — of your body
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. wound — an injury
  24. date — the fruit

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