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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. object — an aim
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. season — in sport
  5. squash — the sport
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. file — a tool
  8. season — of the year
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — rain
  11. mine — for digging
  12. object — to protest
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. squash — to crush
  17. object — a thing
  18. file — a document

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