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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · wind · fall · cold · craft · firm

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. wind — moving air
  3. firm — a company
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cold — an illness
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. firm — decided
  9. firm — steady
  10. cold — not warm
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. craft — boats
  15. cell — in biology
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cell — a phone

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