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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 124 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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. file — a document
  4. scale — size or range
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. fall — to drop
  11. present — a gift
  12. present — there
  13. capital — a city
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. capital — money
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. file — a tool
  22. scale — in music
  23. present — the time now
  24. file — a line of people

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