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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. squash — to crush
  4. spell — magic
  5. fall — to drop
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. fall — to drop
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. fall — the season
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. foot — a measure
  12. spell — letters
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. pit — in a race
  17. spell — a short time
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. squash — the sport
  21. branch — a division
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. foot — part of the body

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