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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. present — there
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. present — the time now
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a line
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pit — a hole
  11. cap — a hat
  12. branch — a division
  13. rest — what's left
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. cold — an illness
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cap — a lid
  22. present — a gift
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cap — of ice

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