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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. branch — a division
  3. bear — the animal
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. last — final
  8. cold — not warm
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. cue — a signal
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — in a race
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. last — finally
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cue — a hint
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cue — for pool
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. last — to go on

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