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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. saw — the tool
  3. chest — a box
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. press — newspapers
  7. file — a line of people
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — not warm
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. chest — of your body
  13. press — a publisher
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. file — a tool
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. rush — hurry
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. press — to push
  22. chest — of your body
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. saw — the tool

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