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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 120 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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — the animal
  3. file — a document
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. object — a thing
  6. file — a tool
  7. object — to protest
  8. file — a line of people
  9. present — the time now
  10. land — to come down
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. present — a gift
  13. land — a country
  14. object — an aim
  15. land — ground
  16. present — there
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. wave — of the sea

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