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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. firm — a company
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. scale — size or range
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. chair — a leader
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. firm — decided
  10. mine — for digging
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. bore — to tire
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. cold — an illness
  16. toast — bread
  17. firm — steady
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. scale — in music
  22. bore — to drill
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. scale — for weighing

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