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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. sharp — clever
  4. object — a thing
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a document
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. root — the cause
  10. object — to protest
  11. hand — help
  12. root — of a plant
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. hand — in cards
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a line
  17. fall — the season
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. object — an aim
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. root — of a word
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. file — a line of people
  24. trunk — of a car

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