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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.

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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cap — a hat
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. object — an aim
  7. rule — a law
  8. tube — a container
  9. bat — the animal
  10. mine — for digging
  11. tube — the underground
  12. object — a thing
  13. rule — government
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. object — to protest
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — to eat
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cap — a lid
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. cold — not warm

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