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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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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: fork · squash · cold · snap · charge · file · clip · sharp

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. file — a line of people
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. snap — to click
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. charge — in control
  8. squash — to crush
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. clip — for paper
  12. charge — a price
  13. clip — a video
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. file — a document
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — clever
  18. charge — electricity
  19. file — a tool
  20. clip — to cut
  21. cold — not warm
  22. squash — the sport
  23. cold — an illness
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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