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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 116 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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. rest — a break
  4. ball — a great time
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. plane — a tool
  7. bass — the fish
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. staff — a stick
  10. staff — employees
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. field — farmland
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cold — an illness
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — for sport
  20. tear — to rip
  21. staff — employees
  22. ball — a dance
  23. bass — low music
  24. rest — what's left

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