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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 116 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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. court — for sport
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. face — to point toward
  8. cold — an illness
  9. face — part of the head
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. vault — a safe
  14. face — to confront
  15. court — of a king
  16. scale — size or range
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. lie — to recline
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. scale — in music
  23. bark — to shout
  24. court — of law

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