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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cap — a lid
  4. face — to confront
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. cap — a hat
  9. pit — a hole
  10. squash — the sport
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — in a race
  13. present — the time now
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. present — a gift
  17. face — to point toward
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. cold — not warm
  20. squash — to crush
  21. present — there
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. bass — low music

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