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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. cap — a hat
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a document
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — of ice
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. spell — a short time
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. rock — music
  12. perch — the fish
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. spell — letters
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. file — a tool
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. spell — magic
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rock — a stone

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