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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. spell — a short time
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. march — the month
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. spell — magic
  9. march — the month
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. foot — a measure
  12. spell — letters
  13. stand — to bear
  14. cold — not warm
  15. lean — to bend
  16. deal — to handle
  17. march — music
  18. lean — thin
  19. spring — a coil
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. spring — of water
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. spring — the season

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