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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. pop — to visit
  3. fork — in a road
  4. file — a document
  5. pop — soda
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. file — a tool
  9. firm — a company
  10. rock — music
  11. swing — to play on
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. cold — not warm
  15. pop — music
  16. rock — a stone
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. firm — decided
  19. kick — in football
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. swing — in golf
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. swing — music

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