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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 120 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. fall — to drop
  6. press — a publisher
  7. press — to push
  8. net — for catching
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. net — in sport
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bear — the animal
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. net — after costs
  20. press — newspapers
  21. cold — not warm
  22. lean — to bend
  23. lean — thin
  24. fall — to drop

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