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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. current — happening now
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. fall — to drop
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. fall — to drop
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. fall — the season
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. pitch — completely
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. current — electric
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. current — of water
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. tear — to rip
  24. cold — an illness

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