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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bark — to shout
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. mate — a partner
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. snap — to click
  10. mate — to breed
  11. cold — not warm
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. season — in sport
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. season — of the year
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. mate — a friend
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. season — to add flavour

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