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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bulb — for light
  6. rule — government
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. fall — to drop
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. face — to confront
  14. cold — not warm
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. fall — to drop
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. cold — an illness
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. fall — the season
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. face — part of the head
  23. hand — in cards
  24. rule — a law

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