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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 116 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 who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. firm — a company
  3. firm — decided
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. clip — to cut
  9. fall — the season
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. land — a country
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. land — to come down
  15. track — a song
  16. land — ground
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. clip — a video
  19. firm — steady
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. clip — for paper
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fall — to drop
  24. lash — to lash out

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