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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. mate — to breed
  4. board — a committee
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. key — in music
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. key — for a lock
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. fall — to drop
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. wake — a trail
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mate — a partner
  19. key — the most important part
  20. board — to get on
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. mate — a friend
  23. cold — not warm
  24. trunk — of a tree

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