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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. fall — the season
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. rest — what's left
  7. scale — in music
  8. rest — what's left
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wake — a trail
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. scale — size or range
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rest — a break
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bark — to shout
  21. rash — a series
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bat — for baseball

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