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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. chip — for betting
  3. fall — the season
  4. wind — moving air
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chip — to eat
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. tear — from crying
  10. pass — a permit
  11. tear — to rip
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. chair — a leader
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. sharp — clever
  21. fall — to drop
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pass — to spend time

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