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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. stand — to bear
  3. rock — music
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. can — a tin
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. file — a tool
  11. can — to be able to
  12. cold — an illness
  13. lie — to recline
  14. file — a line of people
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. can — a tin
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. file — a document
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. cold — not warm
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. rock — a stone

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