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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. wind — moving air
  3. can — a tin
  4. cold — not warm
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. file — a document
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. degree — from a university
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. can — to be able to
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. file — a tool
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wind — moving air
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. degree — an amount
  20. chair — a leader
  21. file — a line of people
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — an illness
  24. chair — to sit on

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