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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. season — in sport
  8. stock — shares
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. season — of the year
  11. pit — in a race
  12. fall — the season
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bark — to shout
  19. pitch — completely
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. wax — to grow
  24. stock — goods

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