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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 124 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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Word bank
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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. deal — to handle
  5. rest — a break
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. rest — what's left
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. rest — what's left
  10. stand — to bear
  11. pit — a hole
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. file — a document
  14. pit — in a race
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — an illness
  17. spring — the season
  18. cold — not warm
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. file — a line of people
  21. spring — a coil
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. spring — of water
  24. stand — for spectators

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