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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: ground · march · cap · cell · lean · fall · rock · deal

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. ground — the earth
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cell — a phone
  7. rock — music
  8. ground — a position
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. march — the month
  11. rock — a stone
  12. cap — of ice
  13. march — music
  14. lean — thin
  15. lean — to bend
  16. fall — to drop
  17. march — the month
  18. deal — to handle
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. cap — a hat
  21. ground — crushed
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cap — a lid

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