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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: board · lean · mate · fall · wind · rash · date · clip

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mate — a friend
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rash — a series
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. fall — the season
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. rash — hasty
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. board — to get on
  16. board — a committee
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. lean — thin
  20. mate — a partner
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lean — to bend
  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