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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. last — finally
  5. cold — an illness
  6. last — final
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. spell — magic
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. spell — a short time
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. mine — for digging
  16. last — to go on
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. spell — letters
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pass — a permit

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