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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. spell — a short time
  3. pit — in a race
  4. rest — a break
  5. scale — size or range
  6. file — a document
  7. spell — letters
  8. file — a line of people
  9. pit — a hole
  10. rest — what's left
  11. scale — in music
  12. cold — an illness
  13. rest — what's left
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. file — a tool
  18. spell — magic
  19. kick — in football
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. kick — a thrill
  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