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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. current — of water
  4. pass — a permit
  5. cold — not warm
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. cap — of ice
  9. file — a tool
  10. cold — an illness
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. tube — the underground
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. current — electric
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. tube — a container
  23. current — happening now
  24. cap — a hat

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