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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. last — final
  5. court — for sport
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. fall — to drop
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. fall — the season
  11. court — of law
  12. ball — a dance
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. cold — not warm
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. toast — bread
  17. last — finally
  18. fall — to drop
  19. ball — a great time
  20. last — to go on
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. date — the fruit
  24. court — of a king

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