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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 124 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. last — final
  3. pit — a hole
  4. sharp — clever
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. drill — a practice
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. drill — army training
  13. drill — the tool
  14. last — to go on
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. last — finally
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. pit — in a race
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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