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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. file — a tool
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a song
  8. last — final
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. last — to go on
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pass — a permit
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. chip — to eat
  22. track — a path
  23. cell — a phone
  24. chip — for betting

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