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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. plane — a tool
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. season — of the year
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. scale — in music
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bore — to drill
  10. cap — a lid
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cap — a hat
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bore — to tire
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. cold — not warm
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. season — in sport
  24. cap — of ice

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