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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 water is too ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. file — a line of people
  4. file — a tool
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. mate — a friend
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. kid — child
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. last — to go on
  13. cold — an illness
  14. net — for catching
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. net — in sport
  17. mate — to breed
  18. file — a document
  19. bulb — for light
  20. last — finally
  21. net — after costs
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bulb — for light
  24. last — final

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