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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — an illness
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. cell — a phone
  6. pop — to visit
  7. cold — not warm
  8. object — an aim
  9. snap — to click
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. object — to protest
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. pop — music
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. rest — a break
  19. object — a thing
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. cell — in biology
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pop — soda

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