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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. firm — a company
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — the season
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. cap — a lid
  10. fall — to drop
  11. court — of law
  12. firm — decided
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. fall — the season
  17. cap — of ice
  18. fall — to drop
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. firm — steady
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. cold — an illness
  24. spring — of water

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