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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. pop — soda
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. pitch — completely
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. branch — a division
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. file — a tool
  11. tube — a container
  12. pop — to visit
  13. pop — music
  14. file — a document
  15. cold — not warm
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cold — an illness
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. wave — of the sea

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