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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 120 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. file — a line of people
  3. wake — a trail
  4. scale — in music
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. drill — a practice
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chest — a box
  14. capital — a city
  15. drill — the tool
  16. chest — of your body
  17. file — a tool
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — to tease
  20. file — a document
  21. capital — money
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. drill — army training

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