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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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 line of people
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. tube — the underground
  4. mine — for digging
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. key — the most important part
  7. tube — a container
  8. cap — of ice
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. wake — a trail
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. key — in music
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lean — thin
  20. key — for a lock
  21. file — a document
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  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