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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. bear — the animal
  4. can — a tin
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. rash — a series
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cold — an illness
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. dip — to sink
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. game — wild animals
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — hasty
  16. squash — to crush
  17. game — a match
  18. can — to be able to
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bear — the animal

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