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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. race — humankind
  3. rush — hurry
  4. stand — to bear
  5. tube — a container
  6. present — a gift
  7. bound — certain
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. fall — the season
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. bound — obliged
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. present — there
  18. kid — to tease
  19. bound — tied together
  20. race — a contest
  21. fall — to drop
  22. present — the time now
  23. race — the arms race
  24. stand — for spectators

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