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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. firm — decided
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. fall — to drop
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. tear — to rip
  10. chair — a leader
  11. firm — a company
  12. row — a line
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. firm — steady
  22. fall — to drop
  23. lie — to recline
  24. row — to paddle

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