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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. ground — a position
  3. lean — thin
  4. row — to paddle
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. game — wild animals
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. ground — crushed
  10. lean — to bend
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. file — a document
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. row — a line
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. prune — to trim
  21. ground — the earth
  22. file — a line of people
  23. prune — to trim
  24. game — a match

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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