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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cue — a signal
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. spell — a short time
  6. capital — money
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. mate — a friend
  9. file — a document
  10. cold — not warm
  11. capital — a city
  12. mate — to breed
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. dip — to sink
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — to grow
  18. file — a line of people
  19. spell — letters
  20. cue — for pool
  21. file — a tool
  22. spell — magic
  23. cue — a hint
  24. mate — a partner

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