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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. tube — a container
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. fall — the season
  8. current — electric
  9. current — of water
  10. swing — music
  11. chip — for betting
  12. fall — to drop
  13. current — happening now
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — a video
  16. march — the month
  17. swing — in golf
  18. chip — to eat
  19. clip — to cut
  20. tube — the underground
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. swing — to play on
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. chip — in a computer

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