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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. rash — a series
  3. tear — to rip
  4. fall — to drop
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. rash — hasty
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. spell — letters
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bound — tied together
  12. stem — to come from
  13. spell — magic
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bound — certain
  16. tear — from crying
  17. fall — the season
  18. bound — obliged
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. tear — from crying
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. lie — to recline

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