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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fall — to drop
  3. club — for dancing
  4. current — happening now
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. tear — from crying
  7. deal — to handle
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. rock — music
  10. fall — to drop
  11. club — a group
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. cold — an illness
  16. current — electric
  17. rock — a stone
  18. tear — to rip
  19. fall — the season
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. tear — from crying
  22. current — of water
  23. club — for golf
  24. deal — a big deal

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