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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. last — final
  8. fall — the season
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. foot — a measure
  14. cell — in biology
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. last — finally
  21. last — to go on
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. lie — to recline

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