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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. mark — a grade
  4. face — to confront
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. march — the month
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. mark — a trace
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. cold — an illness
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. face — part of the head
  16. march — the month
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. face — to point toward
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. pit — a hole
  22. cold — not warm
  23. march — music
  24. bat — 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