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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. present — there
  4. lie — to recline
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. fine — high quality
  9. charge — electricity
  10. cold — not warm
  11. charge — in control
  12. march — music
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pit — a hole
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — a gift
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. bear — the animal
  23. charge — a price
  24. lie — an untruth

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