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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. cold — an illness
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. can — a tin
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. tube — a container
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. tube — the underground
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cold — not warm
  14. spell — a short time
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — magic
  20. can — to be able to
  21. snap — to click
  22. can — a tin
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. temple — a place of worship

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