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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cold — an illness
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. perch — the fish
  8. mug — a cup
  9. march — the month
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. bear — the animal
  13. rash — a series
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. date — the fruit
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. mug — a face
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. rash — hasty
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. cold — not warm
  24. mug — to rob

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