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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. fall — the season
  5. toast — bread
  6. date — the fruit
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. spring — the season
  9. sharp — clever
  10. spring — a coil
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. spring — of water
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. fork — in a road
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. racket — a loud noise

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