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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. file — a tool
  3. cold — not warm
  4. deal — to handle
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. cold — an illness
  7. march — the month
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. march — music
  10. file — a line of people
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — a grade
  14. craft — a skill
  15. plane — a tool
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. file — a document
  18. march — the month
  19. craft — boats
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. craft — a handicraft

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