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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. net — after costs
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. net — in sport
  12. deal — to handle
  13. stand — to bear
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. file — a document
  18. dip — to sink
  19. lie — to recline
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. cold — an illness

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