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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. prune — to trim
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. drill — a practice
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mine — for digging
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. toast — bread
  11. dip — to sink
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. drill — the tool
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. pitch — completely
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. drill — army training
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. cold — an illness

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