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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. swing — music
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. current — happening now
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. fall — to drop
  8. march — music
  9. march — the month
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. ground — the earth
  12. current — of water
  13. ground — a position
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. swing — to play on
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. swing — in golf
  18. chair — a leader
  19. ground — crushed
  20. current — electric
  21. fall — the season
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. march — the month
  24. chair — to sit on

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