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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mark — a trace
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. current — electric
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — rain
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. current — of water
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. band — a music group
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. capital — a city
  18. bark — to shout
  19. mark — a grade
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. band — a ring
  22. current — happening now
  23. capital — money
  24. fall — to drop

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