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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. firm — decided
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. face — to confront
  8. drill — army training
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. firm — steady
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. rash — hasty
  13. drill — the tool
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — part of the head
  16. firm — a company
  17. capital — money
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cold — an illness
  20. capital — a city
  21. drill — a practice
  22. rash — a series
  23. prune — to trim
  24. mouse — the animal

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