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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. row — a line
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. roll — a cake
  6. mug — to rob
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. mug — a cup
  10. file — a document
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. file — a line of people
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. mug — a face
  16. rash — a series
  17. row — to paddle
  18. roll — a list
  19. dip — to sink
  20. file — a tool
  21. plane — a tool
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. rash — on the skin

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