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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 120 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. file — a document
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. rush — hurry
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. chair — a leader
  14. cold — not warm
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. cold — an illness
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. file — a tool
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. chair — a professorship

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