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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — for digging
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. bass — the fish
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. root — of a word
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. spell — a short time
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — in a race
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. spell — letters
  16. deal — to handle
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. fall — to drop
  20. root — the cause
  21. date — the fruit
  22. root — of a plant
  23. fall — the season
  24. spell — magic

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