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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. stock — shares
  5. fine — all right
  6. tube — the underground
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tear — to rip
  10. fine — high quality
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. stock — goods
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. tube — a container
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cold — not warm
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. patient — a sick person

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