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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. shower — to wash
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cell — in biology
  5. fall — to drop
  6. chair — a leader
  7. fall — the season
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. saw — the tool
  12. key — in music
  13. saw — the tool
  14. present — a gift
  15. key — the most important part
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. present — the time now
  18. key — for a lock
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. present — there
  21. cell — a phone
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. shower — rain

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