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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. lean — thin
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. fall — to drop
  5. scale — in music
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. wind — moving air
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to click
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. present — the time now
  13. wind — moving air
  14. present — there
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. present — a gift
  19. fall — to drop
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. lean — to bend
  24. scale — size or range

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