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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 water is too ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. rest — a break
  3. rest — what's left
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — a country
  8. land — ground
  9. cold — an illness
  10. season — in sport
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. spring — the season
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wake — a trail
  15. land — to come down
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. spring — of water
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. season — of the year
  24. wake — before a funeral

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