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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. firm — a company
  3. dip — to sink
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. present — the time now
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. pass — a permit
  10. capital — a city
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. capital — money
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. present — there
  15. file — a document
  16. firm — decided
  17. firm — steady
  18. file — a line of people
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. cold — not warm
  22. present — a gift
  23. cold — an illness
  24. nail — on a finger

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