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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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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: calf · cold · rule · ruler · file · ball · snap · pitch

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. snap — to click
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ball — a dance
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — an illness
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. pitch — completely
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. rule — government
  20. file — a document
  21. rule — a law
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. ball — a great time
  24. file — a line of people

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