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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 make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. file — a document
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. spring — the season
  7. ground — a position
  8. file — a tool
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. clip — a video
  12. scale — size or range
  13. foot — a measure
  14. ground — crushed
  15. deal — to handle
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. scale — in music
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — a coil
  20. clip — for paper
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. clip — to cut
  23. file — a line of people
  24. ground — the earth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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