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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. cold — not warm
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mug — a cup
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. mug — a face
  10. mug — to rob
  11. tube — a container
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. cold — an illness
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. craft — a skill
  16. craft — boats
  17. rule — a law
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. rule — government
  22. saw — the tool
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. tube — the underground

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