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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. file — a document
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. file — a tool
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. net — after costs
  10. hand — in cards
  11. craft — a skill
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. file — a line of people
  17. hand — help
  18. craft — boats
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — the animal
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. pit — in a race

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