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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. rule — a law
  3. file — a line of people
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. hand — in cards
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. pit — in a race
  10. hand — help
  11. rule — government
  12. kid — to tease
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. kid — child
  18. pit — a hole
  19. file — a tool
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. dip — to sink
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. file — a document
  24. dip — a sauce

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