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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — the season
  3. mug — a face
  4. chair — a leader
  5. scale — size or range
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mug — a cup
  8. face — to confront
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. rock — music
  11. face — to point toward
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. scale — in music
  14. tear — from crying
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. rock — a stone
  19. mug — to rob
  20. tear — to rip
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. face — part of the head
  24. fall — to drop

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