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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 · bass · rule · cold · dip · mate · spell · toast

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. toast — bread
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — government
  7. mate — a friend
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. spell — a short time
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mate — to breed
  13. spell — letters
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. file — a document
  16. bass — the fish
  17. file — a tool
  18. bass — low music
  19. cold — not warm
  20. spell — magic
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. file — a line of people
  24. dip — to sink

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