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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. mark — a grade
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. cold — not warm
  6. mark — a trace
  7. degree — from a university
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. ball — a great time
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. cold — an illness
  13. degree — temperature
  14. fall — the season
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. snap — to click
  19. fall — to drop
  20. ball — a dance
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. degree — an amount
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. leaves — to go away

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