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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 120 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. fall — to drop
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. present — there
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. mark — a trace
  11. bear — the animal
  12. present — a gift
  13. fall — the season
  14. bat — the animal
  15. mark — a grade
  16. present — the time now
  17. fall — to drop
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. snap — to click
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bear — 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