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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. file — a document
  3. mark — a grade
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. court — of a king
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bass — the fish
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. court — of law
  11. sharp — clever
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. mark — a trace
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. roll — a cake
  16. court — for sport
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. file — a tool
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. roll — a list
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bass — low music
  24. pitch — a sports field

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