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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. mark — a grade
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. face — part of the head
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. shower — to wash
  12. land — a country
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. mark — a trace
  15. shower — rain
  16. bank — for money
  17. cold — not warm
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. land — to come down
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. land — ground
  22. cold — an illness
  23. face — to confront
  24. face — to point toward

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