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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. ball — a dance
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. ball — a great time
  5. shower — to wash
  6. file — a line of people
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. snap — to click
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. suit — to fit
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. land — to come down
  14. shower — rain
  15. suit — in cards
  16. land — ground
  17. file — a tool
  18. land — a country
  19. suit — clothes
  20. court — for sport
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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