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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. fall — the season
  3. toast — bread
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. tear — to rip
  6. plane — a tool
  7. fall — to drop
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. staff — employees
  11. cell — in biology
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. tear — from crying
  14. fall — to drop
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. cell — a phone
  24. mouse — 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