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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. land — ground
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — not warm
  6. track — a path
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. file — a line of people
  11. land — a country
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. track — to keep track
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. cold — an illness
  16. file — a document
  17. dip — to sink
  18. land — to come down
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. stand — to bear
  23. file — a tool
  24. track — a song

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