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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. file — a document
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. clip — to cut
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. charge — in control
  15. file — a tool
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. clip — a video
  21. toast — bread
  22. charge — a price
  23. file — a line of people
  24. charge — electricity

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