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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. firm — decided
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. can — a tin
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wind — moving air
  9. kid — child
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. fall — the season
  13. foot — a measure
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. prune — to trim
  17. plane — a tool
  18. can — a tin
  19. wind — moving air
  20. can — to be able to
  21. firm — a company
  22. firm — steady
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. wind — to turn a key

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