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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fall — to drop
  3. shower — rain
  4. clip — to cut
  5. fine — high quality
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. fall — to drop
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. roll — a cake
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. plane — a tool
  13. clip — for paper
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. fall — the season
  19. clip — a video
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. ball — a dance
  22. ball — a great time
  23. roll — a list
  24. ruler — for measuring

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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