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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 water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rock — a stone
  4. rest — what's left
  5. ball — a great time
  6. spell — a short time
  7. rest — a break
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. spell — magic
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. ball — a dance
  14. spell — letters
  15. rock — music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. current — electric
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. current — happening now
  21. scale — in music
  22. rest — what's left
  23. current — of water
  24. rock — to move gently

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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