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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. land — to come down
  4. fall — the season
  5. land — ground
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. spring — the season
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. bark — to shout
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. spring — a coil
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. spring — of water
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. land — a country
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rest — a break
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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