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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. cell — in biology
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. kid — child
  9. bore — to tire
  10. land — a country
  11. kid — to tease
  12. cell — a phone
  13. land — ground
  14. present — the time now
  15. fall — the season
  16. present — there
  17. land — to come down
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bore — to drill
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. present — a gift

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