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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. object — a thing
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. ground — a position
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. object — an aim
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bat — the animal
  11. object — to protest
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. content — happy
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. rock — music
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. plane — a tool
  21. ground — crushed
  22. rock — a stone
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. content — the amount

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