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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bank — of a river
  3. game — a match
  4. track — to keep track
  5. row — a line
  6. press — to push
  7. press — newspapers
  8. race — a contest
  9. track — a path
  10. press — a publisher
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — to confront
  13. track — a song
  14. bank — for money
  15. bank — for money
  16. game — wild animals
  17. race — the arms race
  18. fall — to drop
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. fall — the season
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. face — part of the head
  23. race — humankind
  24. row — to paddle

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