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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 120 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. swing — to play on
  3. firm — steady
  4. firm — a company
  5. wind — moving air
  6. file — a tool
  7. swing — in golf
  8. file — a document
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cold — an illness
  17. file — a line of people
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. swing — music
  22. fork — in a road
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. firm — decided

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