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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. bat — the animal
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — an illness
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — in music
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. ball — a great time
  12. lean — to bend
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. lean — thin
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. scale — size or range
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. ball — a dance

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