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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. root — the cause
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. fall — the season
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — rain
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rush — hurry
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. chest — of your body
  13. fork — in a road
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. fall — to drop
  17. root — of a plant
  18. fine — all right
  19. root — of a word
  20. fine — high quality
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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