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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. file — a tool
  4. cap — a lid
  5. file — a line of people
  6. cap — a hat
  7. dip — to sink
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. firm — decided
  10. stock — shares
  11. shower — to wash
  12. firm — a company
  13. mark — a trace
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. file — a document
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. firm — steady
  19. cap — of ice
  20. mark — a grade
  21. shower — rain
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. stock — goods
  24. wind — moving air

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