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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 116 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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. last — to go on
  3. pit — a hole
  4. cold — an illness
  5. scale — in music
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. tube — a container
  10. last — final
  11. rock — a stone
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. rock — music
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. pit — in a race
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. scale — size or range
  23. last — finally
  24. lie — to recline

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