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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. rule — government
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. rash — hasty
  7. vault — a safe
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. cue — a hint
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cue — for pool
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. file — a document
  15. rule — a law
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. file — a line of people
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rash — a series
  24. file — a tool

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