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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. fall — to drop
  3. land — ground
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. fall — the season
  7. stock — shares
  8. season — of the year
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. rest — a break
  11. firm — steady
  12. rest — what's left
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. stock — goods
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. fall — to drop
  18. land — a country
  19. firm — a company
  20. rest — what's left
  21. game — a match
  22. land — to come down
  23. season — in sport
  24. game — wild animals

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