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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 116 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. suit — clothes
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mug — a face
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. mug — a cup
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — the season
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. cold — an illness
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rash — hasty
  14. cold — not warm
  15. dip — to sink
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. suit — to fit
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. suit — in cards
  20. rash — a series
  21. spring — of water
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. cabinet — ministers

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