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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pop — music
  3. fall — to drop
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pound — a weight
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. spell — a short time
  8. can — to be able to
  9. fall — the season
  10. pop — to visit
  11. spell — letters
  12. scale — in music
  13. spell — magic
  14. can — a tin
  15. land — to come down
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. land — a country
  18. scale — size or range
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. pop — soda
  21. land — ground
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. bat — the animal
  24. can — a tin

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