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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 120 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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. fall — to drop
  4. plane — a tool
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. spell — letters
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. cold — an illness
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pound — a weight
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. spell — magic
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. spell — a short time
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. fall — the season
  24. cold — not warm

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