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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — of water
  4. lean — to bend
  5. cell — a phone
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. chest — of your body
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. spring — a coil
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fall — to drop
  14. kid — child
  15. lean — thin
  16. race — humankind
  17. chest — a box
  18. race — the arms race
  19. race — a contest
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. fall — to drop
  24. kid — to tease

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