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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. ball — a dance
  4. scale — in music
  5. wound — an injury
  6. deal — to handle
  7. file — a line of people
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. ball — a great time
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. shower — to wash
  13. scale — size or range
  14. wound — an injury
  15. shower — rain
  16. pit — a hole
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. pit — in a race
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. file — a tool

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