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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 water is too ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fine — high quality
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a document
  6. shower — rain
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. press — a publisher
  9. press — newspapers
  10. press — to push
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. file — a tool
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — government
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. fine — all right
  24. cold — an illness

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