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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. cold — an illness
  9. spell — letters
  10. tube — a container
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. prune — to trim
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. rush — hurry
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. cold — not warm
  19. tube — the underground
  20. spell — a short time
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. prune — to trim
  23. spell — magic
  24. temple — a place of worship

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