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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. fall — the season
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. fall — to drop
  5. can — to be able to
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. rock — a stone
  8. lie — to recline
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. net — in sport
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bound — obliged
  13. can — a tin
  14. club — a group
  15. net — for catching
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. fall — to drop
  18. club — for golf
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rock — music
  21. bound — certain
  22. can — a tin
  23. net — after costs
  24. bound — tied together

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