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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. land — ground
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chip — to eat
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — an illness
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pitch — completely
  10. chip — for betting
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. land — a country
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. land — to come down
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. season — in sport
  18. tear — to rip
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. season — of the year
  21. craft — boats
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. craft — a skill
  24. leaves — lets stay

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