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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. march — the month
  3. pitch — completely
  4. cold — not warm
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. chair — a leader
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. content — happy
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. march — music
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — a break
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. march — the month
  18. dip — to sink
  19. rest — what's left
  20. content — the amount
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. cold — an illness

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