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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — all right
  4. lie — to recline
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. fine — high quality
  7. cold — an illness
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bass — the fish
  11. last — to go on
  12. cold — not warm
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. last — finally
  17. spring — the season
  18. last — final
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. mate — to breed
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. bass — low music
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — a big deal

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