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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. kid — child
  3. lean — thin
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bass — low music
  7. march — the month
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bass — the fish
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. march — music
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. lean — to bend
  15. bulb — for light
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bulb — for light
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. march — the month
  20. kid — to tease
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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