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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pitch — completely
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. plane — a tool
  7. staff — a stick
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. pop — to visit
  11. pop — soda
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. staff — employees
  14. file — a document
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. staff — employees
  17. scale — in music
  18. file — a line of people
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. scale — size or range
  23. wake — a trail
  24. file — a tool

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