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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 120 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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. suit — in cards
  3. suit — clothes
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cap — a hat
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. press — to push
  11. tear — from crying
  12. hand — help
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. tear — to rip
  16. dip — to sink
  17. cold — not warm
  18. suit — to fit
  19. board — a committee
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. board — to get on
  23. tear — from crying
  24. press — newspapers

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