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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. file — a document
  3. last — finally
  4. last — to go on
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. branch — a division
  9. face — to confront
  10. bulb — for light
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cell — a phone
  14. face — part of the head
  15. scale — in music
  16. bulb — for light
  17. last — final
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. file — a line of people
  20. cell — in biology
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. face — to point toward
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. cell — in a prison

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