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

Word bank: mate · cold · mouse · lie · race · nail · fall · cabinet

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cold — an illness
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. lie — to recline
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. race — humankind
  21. fall — to drop
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mate — a partner

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