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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. land — ground
  3. fall — to drop
  4. mug — a cup
  5. degree — an amount
  6. firm — a company
  7. degree — from a university
  8. capital — money
  9. land — to come down
  10. fall — the season
  11. land — a country
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. court — of a king
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pitch — completely
  17. capital — a city
  18. court — for sport
  19. firm — steady
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. firm — decided
  22. mug — to rob
  23. mug — a face
  24. court — of law

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