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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: cold · fall · nail · stand · file · swing · kid · deal

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. swing — music
  3. deal — to handle
  4. swing — in golf
  5. kid — child
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. file — a tool
  9. stand — to bear
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. kid — to tease
  18. fall — the season
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. file — a document
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. fall — to drop
  23. swing — to play on
  24. deal — a big deal

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