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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bank — for money
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. charge — electricity
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bank — of a river
  10. clip — a video
  11. kick — in football
  12. file — a document
  13. charge — in control
  14. club — for golf
  15. clip — to cut
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. clip — for paper
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bank — for money
  21. club — a group
  22. charge — a price
  23. club — for dancing
  24. file — a tool

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