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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. net — after costs
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. lean — to bend
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. net — for catching
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. lean — thin
  14. fall — the season
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. chest — of your body
  19. net — in sport
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. pound — a weight
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. lean — to rest against

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