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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a line of people
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. land — to come down
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cold — not warm
  14. degree — an amount
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. land — a country
  19. bear — the animal
  20. degree — from a university
  21. land — ground
  22. stand — to bear
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stand — on your feet

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