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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. court — of law
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. squash — to crush
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. fork — in a road
  9. firm — steady
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. firm — a company
  15. fall — to drop
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. squash — the sport
  18. chair — a leader
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. sharp — clever
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. fall — the season
  24. firm — decided

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