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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. track — a song
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. pop — soda
  9. cold — an illness
  10. lie — to recline
  11. capital — money
  12. cold — not warm
  13. pop — to visit
  14. perch — the fish
  15. track — a path
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. drill — a practice
  18. drill — army training
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. drill — the tool
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. pop — music
  24. capital — a city

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