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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. rock — music
  3. bat — the animal
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. fall — to drop
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — thin
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rock — a stone
  18. fall — the season
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. lean — to bend

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