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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bound — certain
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bound — tied together
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. file — a tool
  10. cue — for pool
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cue — a signal
  15. file — a line of people
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. file — a document
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. branch — a division
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bound — obliged

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