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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 rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. bound — certain
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bound — obliged
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bound — tied together
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. cap — of ice
  14. bear — the animal
  15. file — a document
  16. kick — in football
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. pitch — completely
  21. wake — a trail
  22. cap — a lid
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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