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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. cold — not warm
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to confront
  14. sharp — clever
  15. cold — an illness
  16. plane — a tool
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. wind — moving air
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. face — to point toward
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. suit — in cards
  24. suit — to fit

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