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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. squash — to crush
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. row — to paddle
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. squash — the sport
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. file — a document
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. row — a line
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — temperature
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. degree — from a university
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. file — a line of people
  24. march — the month

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