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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. shower — rain
  4. row — a line
  5. rule — a law
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. row — to paddle
  9. band — a ring
  10. rule — government
  11. cue — for pool
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cold — an illness
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. stand — to bear
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. band — a music group
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. cue — a signal
  21. season — in sport
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. season — of the year
  24. cue — a hint

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