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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. mark — a grade
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. fall — to drop
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. rock — music
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. fall — the season
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. rock — a stone
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — to tire
  24. saw — the tool

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