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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. swing — to play on
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. present — the time now
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. staff — a stick
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. swing — music
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. staff — employees
  17. file — a document
  18. swing — in golf
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. stem — to come from
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. staff — employees
  24. present — a gift

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