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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. fall — to drop
  3. stem — to come from
  4. can — a tin
  5. last — final
  6. fall — to drop
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. march — music
  9. last — to go on
  10. can — a tin
  11. march — the month
  12. last — finally
  13. bass — the fish
  14. can — to be able to
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. bass — low music
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. march — the month
  20. fall — the season
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. deal — an agreement

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