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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. file — a document
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. field — for sport
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. field — farmland
  7. court — of law
  8. rash — hasty
  9. hand — help
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. court — of a king
  12. hand — in cards
  13. rash — a series
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. court — for sport
  17. file — a line of people
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. field — a subject
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. file — a tool
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. dip — to sink

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