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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. mug — a face
  3. bound — obliged
  4. court — for sport
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. court — of a king
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cold — not warm
  9. fall — to drop
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. mug — a cup
  12. bound — tied together
  13. prune — to trim
  14. charge — in control
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. charge — electricity
  17. mug — to rob
  18. fall — the season
  19. charge — a price
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. court — of law
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cold — an illness
  24. bound — certain

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