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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mark · rush · chest · ruler · fan · cold · lie · swing

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. swing — music
  5. chest — of your body
  6. swing — to play on
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. mark — a grade
  12. mark — a trace
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. lie — to recline
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. swing — in golf
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. chest — a box
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. rush — hurry
  23. chest — of your body
  24. lie — an untruth

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