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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. firm — steady
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. file — a tool
  6. mine — for digging
  7. file — a line of people
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. chip — to eat
  11. shower — to wash
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. firm — decided
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. chip — for betting
  16. scale — in music
  17. shower — rain
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. file — a document
  24. firm — a company

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