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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. rest — a break
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bass — low music
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. prune — to trim
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. prune — to trim
  18. row — to paddle
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. cold — not warm
  24. row — a line

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