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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. field — a subject
  4. kid — to tease
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. field — farmland
  7. kid — child
  8. rest — what's left
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. fall — the season
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. stand — to bear
  14. field — for sport
  15. bark — to shout
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rash — hasty
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. rest — a break
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rash — a series

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