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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chip — to eat
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. cold — an illness
  6. craft — boats
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. pit — a hole
  10. press — newspapers
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. craft — a skill
  14. pit — in a race
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. press — to push
  18. cold — not warm
  19. press — a publisher
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. chip — for betting
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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