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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 120 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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. tear — from crying
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. foot — a measure
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — not warm
  12. tear — from crying
  13. dip — to sink
  14. march — music
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. cold — an illness
  20. march — the month
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. march — the month
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. mouse — the animal

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