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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 116 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. ball — a great time
  3. degree — temperature
  4. last — finally
  5. file — a document
  6. degree — from a university
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bound — tied together
  9. last — to go on
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. object — a thing
  12. object — an aim
  13. object — to protest
  14. bound — obliged
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bound — certain
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. last — final
  20. degree — an amount
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. ball — a dance
  23. prune — to trim
  24. leaves — to go away

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