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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. cold — not warm
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. sharp — clever
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — army training
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. rest — what's left
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. chest — a box
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pass — a permit
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rest — a break
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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