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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. mark — a grade
  4. last — finally
  5. present — a gift
  6. present — the time now
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mug — a face
  9. mug — a cup
  10. chest — of your body
  11. last — final
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. present — there
  15. mug — to rob
  16. fall — the season
  17. mine — for digging
  18. chest — a box
  19. fall — to drop
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. chest — of your body
  24. last — to go on

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