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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. spring — of water
  3. fall — to drop
  4. spell — magic
  5. swing — music
  6. scale — size or range
  7. spell — letters
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. mate — a partner
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — for sport
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mate — a friend
  15. spring — a coil
  16. mate — to breed
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. fall — the season
  19. court — of law
  20. spring — the season
  21. stand — to bear
  22. swing — in golf
  23. spell — a short time
  24. swing — to play on

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