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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. file — a tool
  3. snap — to click
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mine — for digging
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. rest — a break
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bulb — for light
  14. face — to confront
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. season — in sport
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bulb — for light
  19. season — of the year
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. rest — what's left
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. face — part of the head

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