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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. fall — the season
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bear — the animal
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bass — the fish
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pitch — completely
  9. charge — electricity
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bass — low music
  18. charge — a price
  19. fall — to drop
  20. pound — a weight
  21. charge — in control
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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