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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wind — moving air
  3. charge — electricity
  4. rest — what's left
  5. charge — in control
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bass — low music
  9. scale — in music
  10. fall — the season
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bass — the fish
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. charge — a price
  19. rest — a break
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rest — what's left
  22. scale — size or range
  23. fall — to drop
  24. rush — a thrill

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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