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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. mark — a grade
  3. kid — to tease
  4. drill — the tool
  5. fall — to drop
  6. press — to push
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. drill — a practice
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. land — a country
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. board — to get on
  14. mark — a trace
  15. land — to come down
  16. fall — the season
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. land — ground
  19. drill — army training
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. board — a committee
  23. kid — child
  24. rush — a thrill

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