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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — the season
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. cell — in biology
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. hand — help
  9. rash — a series
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. rash — hasty
  13. bark — to shout
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. cell — a phone
  20. fall — to drop
  21. squash — to crush
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. squash — the sport
  24. stem — of a plant

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