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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. fine — high quality
  5. lie — to recline
  6. game — wild animals
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mark — a trace
  12. degree — an amount
  13. game — a match
  14. fall — the season
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. degree — from a university
  21. fine — all right
  22. degree — temperature
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. mark — a grade

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