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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — for sport
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. date — the fruit
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. pound — a weight
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — a tool
  15. fall — the season
  16. field — a subject
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. fall — to drop
  23. kick — in football
  24. mouse — the animal

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