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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. file — a tool
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. file — a line of people
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. cell — a phone
  11. drill — a practice
  12. chip — for betting
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. chip — to eat
  16. swing — in golf
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. swing — to play on
  20. cell — in biology
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. swing — music
  23. file — a document
  24. drill — army training

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