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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rush — hurry
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. last — final
  7. rash — a series
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. last — finally
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. lie — to recline
  16. drill — a practice
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. fall — the season
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. last — to go on
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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