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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: ground · chest · perch · fall · fine · row · toast · firm

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. firm — a company
  4. fine — all right
  5. ground — a position
  6. fall — to drop
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — the fish
  9. row — a line
  10. ground — crushed
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. ground — the earth
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. row — to paddle
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. toast — bread
  17. chest — of your body
  18. fine — high quality
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. chest — a box
  21. fall — the season
  22. firm — decided
  23. firm — steady
  24. chest — of your body

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