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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. capital — money
  3. suit — in cards
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. fall — to drop
  8. chest — of your body
  9. kid — to tease
  10. file — a document
  11. suit — clothes
  12. fall — to drop
  13. chest — of your body
  14. kid — child
  15. fall — the season
  16. chest — a box
  17. file — a line of people
  18. dip — to sink
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. suit — to fit
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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