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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: pitcher · rush · dip · mark · fall · chest · game · wake

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rush — hurry
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. chest — a box
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — a trail
  8. mark — a grade
  9. chest — of your body
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. fall — the season
  15. fall — to drop
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. dip — to sink
  19. chest — of your body
  20. game — a match
  21. mark — a trace
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. game — wild animals

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