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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 116 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. row — a line
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. file — a document
  5. current — of water
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. wound — an injury
  8. prune — to trim
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. file — a tool
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. current — electric
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. mine — for digging
  21. row — to paddle
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. current — happening now
  24. prune — to trim

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