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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 120 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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. shower — to wash
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. shower — rain
  11. rash — a series
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. club — a group
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. club — for dancing
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. mark — a grade
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. rash — hasty
  20. mark — a trace
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. lie — to recline

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