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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. drill — army training
  4. sharp — clever
  5. staff — employees
  6. drill — a practice
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a line of people
  9. content — the amount
  10. staff — a stick
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. deal — to handle
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. content — happy
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. staff — employees
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. drill — the tool
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. deal — a big deal

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