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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. season — of the year
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. cold — not warm
  8. season — in sport
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. current — of water
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. bark — to shout
  14. key — for a lock
  15. current — happening now
  16. toast — bread
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. key — the most important part
  19. mine — for digging
  20. current — electric
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. snap — to click
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. key — in music

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