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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 120 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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. key — in music
  4. stand — to bear
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. pound — a weight
  7. lie — to recline
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bear — the animal
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. fall — to drop
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. bear — the animal
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. tube — the underground
  18. fall — to drop
  19. key — for a lock
  20. key — the most important part
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. fall — the season

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