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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. press — a publisher
  4. fall — to drop
  5. spell — magic
  6. last — final
  7. track — a song
  8. last — finally
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a path
  11. last — to go on
  12. cell — a phone
  13. date — the fruit
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. spell — a short time
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. spell — letters
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cell — in biology
  22. fall — the season
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. date — on the calendar

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