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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bound — obliged
  4. charge — in control
  5. stand — to bear
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — a cake
  10. bound — certain
  11. bound — tied together
  12. degree — from a university
  13. fall — to drop
  14. net — in sport
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. fall — the season
  18. degree — temperature
  19. charge — a price
  20. net — after costs
  21. degree — an amount
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. net — for catching
  24. charge — electricity

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