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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. file — a tool
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bass — low music
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. tube — a container
  10. wound — an injury
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. plane — a tool
  16. wound — an injury
  17. tube — the underground
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. file — a document
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. file — a line of people
  24. plane — in geometry

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