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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. press — to push
  4. fall — the season
  5. net — in sport
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. pop — to visit
  9. scale — in music
  10. net — for catching
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. firm — steady
  13. firm — decided
  14. spring — the season
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. spring — a coil
  18. press — a publisher
  19. net — after costs
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pop — soda
  22. spring — of water
  23. pop — music
  24. firm — a company

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