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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. fall — the season
  4. kid — child
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. date — the fruit
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. fall — to drop
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. fall — to drop
  13. mug — a face
  14. bark — to shout
  15. mug — a cup
  16. kid — to tease
  17. chest — a box
  18. stand — to bear
  19. chest — of your body
  20. plane — a tool
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. chest — of your body
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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