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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. rock — music
  4. rock — a stone
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bound — obliged
  8. court — of a king
  9. fall — to drop
  10. court — for sport
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bound — tied together
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. bound — certain
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. court — of law
  23. cold — an illness
  24. snap — to click

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