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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 120 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. track — to keep track
  3. cold — an illness
  4. fall — to drop
  5. court — of law
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. lie — to recline
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cold — not warm
  12. court — for sport
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. deal — to handle
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. track — a path
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. track — a song
  21. court — of a king
  22. sharp — clever
  23. fall — to drop
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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