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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: bark · fall · lie · cell · pit · snap · bear · wake

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pit — in a race
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. cell — a phone
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. cell — in biology
  19. snap — to click
  20. wake — a trail
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. bark — to shout
  23. lie — to recline
  24. bear — the animal

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