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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. drill — the tool
  7. hand — help
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. can — to be able to
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — a law
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cold — not warm
  14. swing — music
  15. cold — an illness
  16. swing — to play on
  17. sharp — clever
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. drill — army training
  23. hand — in cards
  24. drill — a practice

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