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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. band — a music group
  4. cue — for pool
  5. band — a ring
  6. rash — hasty
  7. last — to go on
  8. hand — help
  9. face — to point toward
  10. fall — the season
  11. cue — a hint
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. face — to confront
  14. fall — to drop
  15. last — finally
  16. rash — a series
  17. last — final
  18. spell — a short time
  19. cue — a signal
  20. face — part of the head
  21. spell — magic
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. spell — letters
  24. hand — in cards

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