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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. present — the time now
  5. chest — a box
  6. present — there
  7. bass — low music
  8. fall — the season
  9. bass — the fish
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cap — of ice
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. fork — in a road
  17. cap — a lid
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. fall — to drop
  22. prune — to trim
  23. present — a gift
  24. cap — a hat

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