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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. field — farmland
  3. press — to push
  4. fine — high quality
  5. fall — the season
  6. press — newspapers
  7. rule — government
  8. fine — all right
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. fall — to drop
  11. press — a publisher
  12. field — for sport
  13. row — a line
  14. rule — a law
  15. band — a music group
  16. prune — to trim
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. row — to paddle
  20. prune — to trim
  21. field — a subject
  22. band — a ring
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. rule — to rule out

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