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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. board — a committee
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — a city
  9. board — to get on
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. lean — thin
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wake — a trail
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. capital — money
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fall — the season
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. bat — for baseball

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