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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 116 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — final
  4. land — ground
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bass — low music
  8. tube — the underground
  9. land — to come down
  10. stem — to come from
  11. key — in music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. last — finally
  15. bass — the fish
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. key — for a lock
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. land — a country
  24. rush — hurry

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