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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. cold — not warm
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rash — a series
  10. lie — to recline
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — to grow
  18. rash — hasty
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitcher — a jug

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