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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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. degree — from a university
  3. fall — to drop
  4. degree — an amount
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cue — a hint
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. fall — to drop
  9. root — of a word
  10. charge — a price
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. shower — to wash
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. charge — in control
  15. charge — electricity
  16. degree — temperature
  17. root — of a plant
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cue — for pool
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. fall — the season
  22. root — the cause
  23. shower — rain
  24. straw — a straw man

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