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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rash — hasty
  5. season — of the year
  6. last — final
  7. stand — to bear
  8. fall — to drop
  9. season — in sport
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. rash — a series
  12. bark — to shout
  13. last — finally
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. last — to go on
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. lie — to recline
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. bass — the fish
  23. fall — the season
  24. stand — for spectators

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