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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bank — for money
  6. kid — child
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — a country
  10. current — of water
  11. rock — music
  12. bank — of a river
  13. current — electric
  14. land — to come down
  15. bank — for money
  16. fork — in a road
  17. cell — a phone
  18. rock — a stone
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. current — happening now
  21. fall — the season
  22. land — ground
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. cell — in biology

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