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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. bat — the animal
  3. file — a tool
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. rush — hurry
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. mark — a grade
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. press — a publisher
  15. file — a document
  16. squash — the sport
  17. mark — a trace
  18. press — to push
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. file — a line of people
  22. press — newspapers
  23. plane — a tool
  24. trunk — of a car

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