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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. face — to confront
  3. suit — to fit
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wound — an injury
  7. current — happening now
  8. mark — a grade
  9. face — part of the head
  10. current — electric
  11. suit — clothes
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. dip — to sink
  14. suit — in cards
  15. cold — not warm
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cold — an illness
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. face — to point toward
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — a division
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. current — of water

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