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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. object — an aim
  4. file — a line of people
  5. object — a thing
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. drill — a practice
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. file — a tool
  11. chip — for betting
  12. object — to protest
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. file — a document
  16. drill — army training
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bore — to tire
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cold — not warm
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. spell — magic
  24. arm — a part of something

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