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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pop — to visit
  3. file — a line of people
  4. perch — the fish
  5. fall — the season
  6. pop — music
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. land — a country
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. land — ground
  18. file — a tool
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. file — a document
  21. pop — soda
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. land — to come down
  24. fall — to drop

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