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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.

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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. chip — to eat
  3. file — a line of people
  4. cold — an illness
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pop — to visit
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. chip — for betting
  11. file — a document
  12. pop — music
  13. wake — a trail
  14. file — a tool
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. pop — soda
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. stand — for spectators

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