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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. mark — a trace
  3. wake — a trail
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. mark — a grade
  8. cap — a hat
  9. plane — a tool
  10. snap — to click
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. cap — of ice
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cap — a lid
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. cold — an illness
  24. temple — a place of worship

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