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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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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. file — a line of people
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. file — a tool
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chip — for betting
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. tube — a container
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. file — a document
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chip — to eat
  23. rock — music
  24. bat — for baseball

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