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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 120 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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. file — a tool
  3. bound — tied together
  4. last — final
  5. pitch — completely
  6. file — a line of people
  7. spell — letters
  8. bound — certain
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. land — a country
  12. bear — the animal
  13. last — to go on
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. last — finally
  16. spell — magic
  17. land — ground
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bound — obliged
  22. land — to come down
  23. kid — to tease
  24. bear — the animal

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