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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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Word bank
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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: fall · ground · leaves · roll · sharp · drill · band · rock

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. fall — the season
  4. rock — music
  5. sharp — clever
  6. rock — a stone
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. ground — a position
  12. ground — crushed
  13. fall — to drop
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. roll — a list
  16. drill — army training
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. ground — the earth
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a music group
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. roll — a cake
  24. rock — to move gently

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