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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. ground — the earth
  3. cold — not warm
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. last — to go on
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. plane — a tool
  8. cue — a signal
  9. shower — rain
  10. last — final
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. cue — a hint
  15. pitch — completely
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. cue — for pool
  22. last — finally
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. shower — to wash

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