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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. march — the month
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. file — a document
  7. content — happy
  8. deal — to handle
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. file — a line of people
  13. march — music
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. march — the month
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. content — the amount
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. row — to paddle
  23. file — a tool
  24. mouse — the animal

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