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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. land — to come down
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — part of the head
  8. fall — the season
  9. face — to point toward
  10. ground — crushed
  11. tube — the underground
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. land — a country
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. land — ground
  18. tube — a container
  19. date — the fruit
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. tube — in a tire

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