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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a document
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cold — an illness
  7. chip — for betting
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. row — to paddle
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — to tease
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. kid — child
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. firm — steady
  18. row — a line
  19. ball — a dance
  20. chip — to eat
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. cold — not warm
  23. firm — a company
  24. ball — a great time

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