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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. file — a tool
  3. bank — for money
  4. file — a document
  5. kick — in football
  6. file — a line of people
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mate — a friend
  10. bank — of a river
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mate — to breed
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bank — for money
  18. club — for golf
  19. sharp — clever
  20. cold — an illness
  21. club — a group
  22. cold — not warm
  23. mate — a partner
  24. sharp — with an edge

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