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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. last — final
  4. current — electric
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. fall — the season
  9. last — to go on
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cold — not warm
  13. last — finally
  14. content — the amount
  15. current — of water
  16. content — happy
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. fall — to drop
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — in sport
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. season — of the year
  24. current — happening now

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