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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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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. fine — all right
  5. prune — to trim
  6. fall — the season
  7. mark — a trace
  8. rest — a break
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. shower — to wash
  11. fall — to drop
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. prune — to trim
  16. rest — what's left
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. fine — high quality
  19. mark — a grade
  20. fall — to drop
  21. rest — what's left
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. bat — the animal

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