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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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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: leaves · mug · row · tear · fall · swing · chip · fork

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. swing — to play on
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chip — for betting
  7. row — a line
  8. mug — to rob
  9. tear — from crying
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. swing — in golf
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. fall — to drop
  15. chip — to eat
  16. swing — music
  17. tear — to rip
  18. mug — a face
  19. fall — the season
  20. row — to paddle
  21. mug — a cup
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fork — a garden tool

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