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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. vault — a safe
  5. wake — a trail
  6. file — a line of people
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. file — a document
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. perch — the fish
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cold — an illness
  18. swing — in golf
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. swing — to play on
  21. pitch — completely
  22. cold — not warm
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. swing — music

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