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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. land — to come down
  4. pit — a hole
  5. land — a country
  6. squash — to crush
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. spell — a short time
  10. field — a subject
  11. fall — the season
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pit — in a race
  14. field — farmland
  15. spell — letters
  16. land — ground
  17. spell — magic
  18. capital — a city
  19. wake — a trail
  20. squash — the sport
  21. fall — to drop
  22. field — for sport
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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