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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. current — happening now
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. degree — temperature
  5. tear — to rip
  6. toast — bread
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wind — moving air
  9. current — electric
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wind — moving air
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. tear — from crying
  16. squash — the sport
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. dip — to sink
  19. current — of water
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. cold — an illness
  22. tear — from crying
  23. squash — to crush
  24. cold — not warm

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