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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. wound — an injury
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. shower — to wash
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. root — of a plant
  12. root — of a word
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. fall — to drop
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. shower — rain
  19. wound — an injury
  20. foot — a measure
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. root — the cause
  24. pit — a hole

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