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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. plane — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. hand — in cards
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. bound — certain
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bound — obliged
  11. track — a song
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. hand — help
  14. chip — to eat
  15. bound — tied together
  16. date — the fruit
  17. file — a line of people
  18. track — to keep track
  19. file — a tool
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. track — a path
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chip — for betting

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