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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. scale — in music
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. rest — what's left
  7. net — in sport
  8. roll — a cake
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — a break
  11. scale — size or range
  12. kid — to tease
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. roll — a list
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. net — for catching
  18. file — a tool
  19. kid — child
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. net — after costs
  24. leaves — lets stay

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