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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. present — the time now
  5. net — in sport
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — of water
  9. present — a gift
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. fall — the season
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. spring — a coil
  18. fall — to drop
  19. cold — an illness
  20. net — for catching
  21. cold — not warm
  22. present — there
  23. net — after costs
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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