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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'll be taking the ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. tube — the underground
  3. game — a match
  4. suit — in cards
  5. chest — a box
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rest — a break
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. face — part of the head
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — what's left
  18. suit — clothes
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — to confront
  21. tube — a container
  22. saw — the tool
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. suit — to fit

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