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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. fall — the season
  3. fork — in a road
  4. fall — to drop
  5. sharp — clever
  6. fall — to drop
  7. game — wild animals
  8. scale — size or range
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. swing — to play on
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. swing — in golf
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — in music
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. tear — from crying
  21. game — a match
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. swing — music

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