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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: swing · rest · firm · snap · stock · cell · plane · fall

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rest — what's left
  3. firm — a company
  4. firm — steady
  5. fall — to drop
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. swing — in golf
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — a tool
  10. stock — shares
  11. snap — to click
  12. rest — what's left
  13. cell — a phone
  14. swing — to play on
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. firm — decided
  18. stock — goods
  19. rest — a break
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. fall — the season
  22. cell — in biology
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. swing — music

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