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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. charge — a price
  3. cue — for pool
  4. tear — to rip
  5. rock — music
  6. mug — a face
  7. plane — a tool
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. cue — a hint
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cold — not warm
  13. charge — electricity
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. tear — from crying
  17. rock — a stone
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. mug — a cup
  22. charge — in control
  23. mug — to rob
  24. plane — an aircraft

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