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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. land — ground
  3. kid — child
  4. fall — to drop
  5. land — to come down
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bank — for money
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bank — for money
  11. firm — steady
  12. pop — to visit
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. cold — an illness
  15. firm — a company
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pop — soda
  18. firm — decided
  19. rash — a series
  20. fall — the season
  21. land — a country
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pop — music

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