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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fall — to drop
  3. scale — in music
  4. firm — decided
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. field — for sport
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — a company
  10. branch — a division
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — a subject
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — the season
  16. tube — a container
  17. wind — moving air
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. scale — size or range
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. tube — the underground

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