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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. spell — letters
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. ball — a dance
  5. present — the time now
  6. plane — a tool
  7. game — a match
  8. spell — magic
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — to crush
  11. present — a gift
  12. spell — a short time
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. cap — a hat
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. ball — a great time
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a document
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — wild animals
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cap — of ice
  23. file — a tool
  24. present — there

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