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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. fall — to drop
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a hat
  6. can — to be able to
  7. fall — to drop
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. bore — to tire
  11. fall — the season
  12. cold — not warm
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. can — a tin
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. can — a tin
  22. cap — a lid
  23. lean — to bend
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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