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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. stand — to bear
  11. chip — to eat
  12. cold — not warm
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. wake — a trail
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. chip — for betting
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bowl — to roll

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