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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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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. lean — to bend
  3. net — after costs
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. mine — for digging
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. net — for catching
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. fall — to drop
  12. net — in sport
  13. wake — a trail
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — soda
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pop — music
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. fall — the season
  22. board — a committee
  23. lean — thin
  24. board — to get on

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