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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. file — a tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. rest — what's left
  5. file — a document
  6. track — to keep track
  7. content — the amount
  8. firm — a company
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. rest — a break
  11. firm — steady
  12. track — a song
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. prune — to trim
  15. track — a path
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. firm — decided
  18. cold — not warm
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. rest — what's left
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. content — happy
  24. cold — an illness

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