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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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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 · cold · mate · present · board · track · firm · chip

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. present — the time now
  3. present — there
  4. board — to get on
  5. cold — not warm
  6. firm — decided
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. board — a committee
  9. mate — to breed
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. present — a gift
  13. firm — a company
  14. track — a path
  15. firm — steady
  16. mate — a friend
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. track — a song
  20. chip — for betting
  21. file — a document
  22. chip — to eat
  23. track — to keep track
  24. cold — an illness

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