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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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Word bank
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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: ball · drill · fall · lie · dip · bear · net · cell

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. drill — army training
  3. ball — a dance
  4. fall — the season
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bear — the animal
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. fall — to drop
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. drill — a practice
  15. cell — a phone
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching
  19. drill — the tool
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. bear — the animal
  22. net — in sport
  23. lie — to recline
  24. dip — to sink

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