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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · bear · rule · cold · mine · bore · mouse · bowl

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. cold — not warm
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bear — the animal
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. file — a document
  10. bear — the animal
  11. file — a line of people
  12. cold — an illness
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. bore — to tire
  21. file — a tool
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — a law
  24. bowl — a football final

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