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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a document
  4. bear — the animal
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. march — the month
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bear — the animal
  13. march — the month
  14. rock — a stone
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. snap — to click
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rock — music
  21. fine — high quality
  22. march — music
  23. file — a tool
  24. pitcher — a jug

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