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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. drill — a practice
  5. cell — a phone
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fine — all right
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. drill — the tool
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. fine — high quality
  16. drill — army training
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. sharp — clever
  20. tube — a container
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. cell — in biology
  24. tube — the underground

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