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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. firm — steady
  3. fork — in a road
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cold — an illness
  7. march — the month
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. cold — not warm
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cell — in biology
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. march — the month
  19. firm — a company
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. firm — decided
  22. march — music
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. saw — the tool

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