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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. cold — not warm
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. pass — a permit
  9. chest — a box
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. chest — of your body
  12. file — a line of people
  13. file — a tool
  14. cold — an illness
  15. shower — to wash
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. present — there
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — the time now
  20. shower — rain
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. leaves — lets stay

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