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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 120 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bound — obliged
  4. shower — rain
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fall — to drop
  7. firm — steady
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bound — certain
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cue — a hint
  14. fall — to drop
  15. shower — to wash
  16. cell — in biology
  17. firm — a company
  18. bound — tied together
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. row — to paddle
  21. fall — the season
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — the animal
  24. row — a line

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