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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. plane — a tool
  3. pit — in a race
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. stand — to bear
  7. fall — the season
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cell — a phone
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stock — shares
  14. stock — goods
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pit — a hole
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. cold — not warm
  21. bat — the animal
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cold — the Cold War

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