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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — not warm
  3. ball — a dance
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. key — for a lock
  9. mug — a face
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. ball — a great time
  12. key — in music
  13. key — the most important part
  14. mug — to rob
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. perch — the fish
  17. deal — to handle
  18. tear — to rip
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mug — a cup
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. perch — for a bird

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