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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. suit — clothes
  3. season — in sport
  4. hand — help
  5. season — of the year
  6. bat — the animal
  7. ball — a great time
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. field — for sport
  10. file — a line of people
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. field — a subject
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. file — a document
  15. ball — a dance
  16. suit — to fit
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. hand — in cards
  19. suit — in cards
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. field — farmland

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