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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. stem — to come from
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. fine — high quality
  6. file — a document
  7. bat — the animal
  8. mug — a face
  9. file — a tool
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — all right
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. file — a line of people
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. chip — for betting
  19. mug — a cup
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mug — to rob
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. chip — to eat

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