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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. ground — the earth
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. present — there
  9. ground — a position
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cold — not warm
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. present — a gift
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. ground — crushed
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. rash — a series
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rash — hasty
  24. present — the time now

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