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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. face — to point toward
  3. rock — a stone
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. ground — a position
  6. face — to confront
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bass — low music
  9. ground — crushed
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bass — the fish
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. face — part of the head
  22. lie — to recline
  23. rock — music
  24. bass — the instrument

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