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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. march — the month
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. face — to confront
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. march — the month
  13. cold — an illness
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. march — music
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. face — to point toward
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. face — part of the head
  24. arm — a part of something

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