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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. game — a match
  3. band — a ring
  4. fall — to drop
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. band — a music group
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. lie — to recline
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bound — tied together
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. kid — child
  15. mark — a trace
  16. fall — the season
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bound — certain
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — wild animals
  21. saw — the tool
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. kid — to tease
  24. bound — obliged

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