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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. scale — in music
  4. staff — employees
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. race — a contest
  8. land — to come down
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bulb — for light
  11. staff — employees
  12. bulb — for light
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. fall — the season
  15. race — humankind
  16. land — a country
  17. wake — a trail
  18. land — ground
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — final
  21. fall — to drop
  22. staff — a stick
  23. last — finally
  24. scale — size or range

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