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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 116 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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bank — for money
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. degree — from a university
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. fall — to drop
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bank — of a river
  14. swing — in golf
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. degree — temperature
  20. kid — child
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bank — for money
  23. fall — the season
  24. swing — music

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