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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 116 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — high quality
  4. tear — from crying
  5. capital — a city
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cell — a phone
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. tear — to rip
  10. capital — money
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. tear — from crying
  14. fall — the season
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. lie — to recline
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. mark — a trace
  19. cell — in biology
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. mark — a grade

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