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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. march — the month
  3. key — for a lock
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. key — the most important part
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. cold — not warm
  15. track — a song
  16. march — the month
  17. bark — to shout
  18. track — a path
  19. march — music
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. track — to keep track
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. cold — an illness
  24. key — in music

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