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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  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. wave — with your hand
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. file — a line of people
  4. content — happy
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. rush — hurry
  7. saw — the tool
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. ground — crushed
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. staff — a stick
  13. saw — the tool
  14. content — the amount
  15. date — the fruit
  16. file — a document
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. file — a tool
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — employees
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. ground — a position
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. ground — the earth

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