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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. chest — of your body
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. pitch — completely
  5. last — finally
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. chest — of your body
  8. last — final
  9. drill — army training
  10. fine — high quality
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. last — to go on
  14. drill — the tool
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fall — the season
  17. fine — all right
  18. drill — a practice
  19. chest — a box
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. fall — to drop
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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