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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 rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pound — a weight
  4. file — a document
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. shower — rain
  7. clip — to cut
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. field — farmland
  10. clip — for paper
  11. file — a line of people
  12. clip — a video
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. row — to paddle
  15. field — for sport
  16. fine — high quality
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. shower — to wash
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. field — a subject
  21. row — a line
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. fine — all right
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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