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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. chip — for betting
  3. key — for a lock
  4. chip — to eat
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. tube — the underground
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. fall — to drop
  10. branch — a division
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. fall — to drop
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. cold — an illness
  16. file — a document
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. key — in music
  19. file — a tool
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cold — not warm
  22. fall — the season
  23. tube — a container
  24. key — the most important part

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