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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 124 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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. game — a match
  4. court — of a king
  5. file — a tool
  6. cold — an illness
  7. current — of water
  8. suit — clothes
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. row — a line
  11. current — electric
  12. suit — to fit
  13. suit — in cards
  14. current — happening now
  15. court — for sport
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. row — to paddle
  18. game — wild animals
  19. court — of law
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cold — not warm
  24. file — a line of people

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