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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cue — for pool
  3. swing — to play on
  4. drill — a practice
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. swing — music
  9. field — farmland
  10. swing — in golf
  11. dip — to sink
  12. cue — a signal
  13. field — a subject
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cold — an illness
  16. field — for sport
  17. drill — the tool
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. cue — a hint
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. drill — army training
  24. wound — an injury

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