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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 124 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: fall · firm · lean · track · face · pound · kid · game

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. lean — to bend
  4. firm — a company
  5. kid — to tease
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. game — a match
  8. firm — decided
  9. fall — to drop
  10. face — to confront
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pound — a weight
  13. track — a path
  14. firm — steady
  15. track — a song
  16. track — to keep track
  17. fall — the season
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — part of the head
  20. fall — to drop
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. kid — child
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. pound — for dogs

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