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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. suit — to fit
  3. present — the time now
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. cell — in biology
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. cell — a phone
  9. present — a gift
  10. march — music
  11. content — happy
  12. content — the amount
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. pitch — completely
  17. suit — in cards
  18. present — there
  19. bark — to shout
  20. fall — to drop
  21. march — the month
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. march — the month
  24. suit — clothes

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