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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. file — a tool
  3. hand — in cards
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. capital — money
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. toast — bread
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rush — hurry
  19. hand — help
  20. date — the fruit
  21. capital — a city
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a line of people
  24. rush — to hurry

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