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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rash — hasty
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. cold — not warm
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. mine — for digging
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rush — hurry
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. cold — an illness
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. rash — a series
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. wave — of the sea

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