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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bass — low music
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — the fish
  8. game — a match
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. chest — of your body
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. fall — to drop
  15. game — wild animals
  16. fall — to drop
  17. toast — bread
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. dip — to sink
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. chest — a box
  24. dip — to dunk

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