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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 112 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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. march — music
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. charge — electricity
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. march — the month
  7. charge — a price
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bat — the animal
  10. fall — the season
  11. tube — the underground
  12. charge — in control
  13. march — the month
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wake — a trail
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — goods
  23. lie — to recline
  24. tube — a container

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