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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. file — a line of people
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. can — a tin
  5. press — to push
  6. row — to paddle
  7. press — newspapers
  8. track — a path
  9. row — a line
  10. cold — an illness
  11. can — to be able to
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. game — wild animals
  14. press — a publisher
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. track — to keep track
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. file — a tool
  20. track — a song
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. file — a document
  23. game — a match
  24. cold — not warm

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