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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. prune — to trim
  4. mug — a cup
  5. cold — an illness
  6. pop — music
  7. shower — rain
  8. mug — a face
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. pop — to visit
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. cold — not warm
  14. dip — to sink
  15. lie — to recline
  16. can — to be able to
  17. can — a tin
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. can — a tin
  20. mug — to rob
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. pop — soda
  23. prune — to trim
  24. shower — to wash

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