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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wound — an injury
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. mug — a cup
  7. band — a music group
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. present — the time now
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. file — a document
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. present — there
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. band — a ring
  16. bore — to drill
  17. present — a gift
  18. bore — to tire
  19. mug — to rob
  20. mug — a face
  21. file — a tool
  22. chip — to eat
  23. wound — an injury
  24. chip — for betting

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