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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 116 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. field — farmland
  3. object — a thing
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. rash — hasty
  7. field — a subject
  8. branch — a division
  9. object — an aim
  10. wind — moving air
  11. field — for sport
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. rash — a series
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. fine — high quality
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. kid — child
  23. object — to protest
  24. fine — all right

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