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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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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: fall · pitcher · tube · court · game · hide · plane · bank

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. bank — for money
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bank — for money
  8. plane — a tool
  9. tube — a container
  10. game — a match
  11. fall — the season
  12. court — of a king
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bank — of a river
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. court — for sport
  20. game — wild animals
  21. tube — the underground
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. court — of law
  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