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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 116 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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Word bank
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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. ball — a great time
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. ball — a dance
  7. bat — the animal
  8. fall — the season
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pass — a permit
  15. fall — to drop
  16. rest — a break
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cell — in biology
  21. rest — what's left
  22. cell — a phone
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. lie — to recline

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