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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. chest — of your body
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. cold — an illness
  6. firm — decided
  7. press — newspapers
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. wake — a trail
  12. chest — a box
  13. face — part of the head
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. face — to point toward
  18. vault — a safe
  19. firm — a company
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. firm — steady
  22. press — a publisher
  23. press — to push
  24. face — to confront

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