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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 120 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: saw · pitcher · firm · fall · bore · rush · track · cold

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. firm — steady
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bore — to tire
  8. track — a path
  9. cold — an illness
  10. fall — to drop
  11. track — a song
  12. firm — decided
  13. track — to keep track
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. fall — the season
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. cold — not warm
  18. bore — to drill
  19. rush — hurry
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. firm — a company
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. saw — the 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