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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. fall — to drop
  3. sharp — clever
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. plane — a tool
  7. bark — to shout
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. charge — in control
  13. fall — the season
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. face — to point toward
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. charge — electricity
  20. dip — to sink
  21. face — part of the head
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. face — to confront
  24. plane — an aircraft

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