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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. prune — to trim
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. face — to confront
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. mine — for digging
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fall — to drop
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bark — to shout
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. fall — to drop
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. face — to point toward
  21. prune — to trim
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. stand — to bear
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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