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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: ball · ruler · chip · mug · saw · row · cold · cap

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. mug — to rob
  5. cap — a lid
  6. row — a line
  7. chip — for betting
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cap — a hat
  10. chip — to eat
  11. saw — the tool
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a dance
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. mug — a cup
  19. ball — a great time
  20. row — to paddle
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. mug — a face
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. cap — of ice

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