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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 120 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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. file — a tool
  3. deal — to handle
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — for money
  7. file — a document
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. file — a line of people
  11. present — a gift
  12. chair — a leader
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. present — there
  17. tube — a container
  18. bank — of a river
  19. present — the time now
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. tube — the underground
  22. fine — all right
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. chair — a professorship

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