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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. cold — not warm
  5. rest — what's left
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — of ice
  13. firm — steady
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. firm — decided
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. cold — an illness
  18. firm — a company
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. kid — child
  22. plane — a tool
  23. kid — to tease
  24. rest — what's left

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