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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. rash — a series
  5. prune — to trim
  6. shower — rain
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. spell — letters
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. dip — to sink
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. shower — to wash
  17. spell — a short time
  18. prune — to trim
  19. rash — hasty
  20. spell — magic
  21. pass — a permit
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the sport

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