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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. present — the time now
  5. last — finally
  6. cold — an illness
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. wound — an injury
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. last — final
  11. present — a gift
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. snap — to click
  14. cold — not warm
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. last — to go on
  24. present — there

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