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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 120 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. fall — to drop
  3. ball — a great time
  4. fall — the season
  5. rest — what's left
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. ground — a position
  8. ground — the earth
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. wax — to grow
  12. mine — for digging
  13. rest — what's left
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. ball — a dance
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. rest — a break
  24. lash — to lash out

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