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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. firm — a company
  3. file — a document
  4. season — of the year
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. wake — a trail
  7. rash — a series
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. firm — steady
  10. spring — the season
  11. stand — to bear
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. spring — of water
  14. land — ground
  15. land — a country
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. file — a line of people
  19. rash — hasty
  20. spring — a coil
  21. firm — decided
  22. file — a tool
  23. land — to come down
  24. wake — before a funeral

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