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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. firm — steady
  4. firm — a company
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. saw — the tool
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. craft — a skill
  9. cold — an illness
  10. rule — a law
  11. firm — decided
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. cold — not warm
  14. rule — government
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. degree — from a university
  19. saw — the tool
  20. degree — temperature
  21. kick — in football
  22. rock — a stone
  23. craft — boats
  24. kick — with a leg

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