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

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. club — for dancing
  3. file — a tool
  4. swing — music
  5. plane — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. swing — to play on
  8. file — a document
  9. saw — the tool
  10. club — for golf
  11. swing — in golf
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. club — a group
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. kid — to tease

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