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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. cold — an illness
  4. pop — to visit
  5. rock — music
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. rock — a stone
  8. face — part of the head
  9. fall — to drop
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. pop — music
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. pop — soda
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cold — not warm
  21. face — to point toward
  22. face — to confront
  23. fall — the season
  24. wound — an injury

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