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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. race — the arms race
  8. lean — thin
  9. charge — electricity
  10. land — a country
  11. land — to come down
  12. charge — a price
  13. charge — in control
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. lean — to bend
  16. land — ground
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. fall — the season
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — a contest
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. hide — animal skin

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