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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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Word bank
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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. object — to protest
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. band — a ring
  7. cold — not warm
  8. fall — to drop
  9. capital — a city
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. capital — money
  13. object — a thing
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. band — a music group
  17. object — an aim
  18. fall — to drop
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. fall — the season
  21. cold — an illness
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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