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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cold — not warm
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. sharp — clever
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. tube — a container
  9. rush — hurry
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. board — a committee
  14. cold — an illness
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. board — to get on
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. coach — a trainer

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