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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fine — high quality
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cold — an illness
  5. staff — a stick
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bound — certain
  11. file — a line of people
  12. staff — employees
  13. vault — a safe
  14. file — a tool
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. file — a document
  17. staff — employees
  18. fine — all right
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the sport
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bound — tied together
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. squash — the vegetable

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