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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. dip — to sink
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. land — ground
  5. branch — a division
  6. sharp — clever
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. cell — a phone
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. row — a line
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cell — in biology
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. row — to paddle
  22. fall — the season
  23. land — a country
  24. dip — a sauce

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