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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. face — to point toward
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. cell — in biology
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cold — an illness
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. face — to confront
  15. shower — rain
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. dip — to sink
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cell — a phone
  20. face — part of the head
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. cold — not warm
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mine — for digging

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