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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: wind · firm · court · chest · cold · lie · fall · suit

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wind — moving air
  5. court — of a king
  6. lie — to recline
  7. court — for sport
  8. fall — to drop
  9. firm — steady
  10. fall — the season
  11. suit — to fit
  12. chest — of your body
  13. firm — a company
  14. chest — a box
  15. court — of law
  16. suit — in cards
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — not warm
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. suit — clothes
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. firm — decided
  24. wind — to turn a key

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