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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mark — a trace
  4. shower — to wash
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cold — an illness
  7. ground — crushed
  8. cold — not warm
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. craft — a skill
  16. charge — electricity
  17. ground — a position
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. ground — the earth
  21. charge — in control
  22. craft — boats
  23. charge — a price
  24. shower — rain

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