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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. The water is too ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — an illness
  4. wound — an injury
  5. lean — thin
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. bear — the animal
  8. lean — to bend
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. squash — the sport
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. wound — an injury
  13. plane — a tool
  14. bear — the animal
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. press — newspapers
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. date — the fruit
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — to crush
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. press — to push
  24. press — a publisher

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