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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. degree — from a university
  3. last — finally
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. last — to go on
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. file — a tool
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. charge — in control
  13. file — a line of people
  14. degree — an amount
  15. charge — electricity
  16. last — final
  17. fork — in a road
  18. charge — a price
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. snap — to click
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. degree — temperature
  24. bat — for baseball

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