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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 116 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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. fall — the season
  3. root — of a plant
  4. perch — the fish
  5. march — the month
  6. fall — to drop
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fall — to drop
  9. march — the month
  10. lean — thin
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. sharp — clever
  15. root — of a word
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. root — the cause
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. wind — moving air
  22. lean — to bend
  23. plane — a tool
  24. march — music

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