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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. fall — to drop
  3. cold — an illness
  4. file — a line of people
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. cap — a lid
  7. dip — to sink
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cell — in biology
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. fall — the season
  13. cue — a signal
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cell — a phone
  17. file — a tool
  18. cue — a hint
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cold — not warm
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cap — a hat

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