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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. club — a group
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. file — a document
  6. cell — a phone
  7. wake — a trail
  8. sharp — clever
  9. cell — in biology
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. file — a line of people
  15. club — for dancing
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. club — for golf
  18. file — a tool

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