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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. face — to point toward
  5. stock — shares
  6. branch — a division
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cold — not warm
  9. capital — money
  10. kick — in football
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. cold — an illness
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. face — part of the head
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. face — to confront
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. stock — goods
  22. capital — a city
  23. foot — a measure
  24. branch — of a bank

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