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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.

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: pop · pass · mug · kick · last · spring · cold · fork

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. spring — a coil
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — a cup
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. last — finally
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. mug — to rob
  11. last — to go on
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pop — soda
  16. kick — in football
  17. spring — of water
  18. last — final
  19. pop — music
  20. spring — the season
  21. pop — to visit
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. cold — not warm
  24. fork — in a road

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