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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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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. bear — the animal
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. ball — a great time
  8. pop — soda
  9. chest — a box
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. cold — an illness
  15. chest — of your body
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. plane — a tool
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. pop — to visit
  20. lie — to recline
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cold — not warm
  23. ball — a dance
  24. pop — 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