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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. drill — the tool
  3. face — to point toward
  4. drill — a practice
  5. spring — the season
  6. roll — a cake
  7. spring — a coil
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. game — wild animals
  10. mug — a cup
  11. hand — help
  12. face — to confront
  13. mug — to rob
  14. spring — of water
  15. roll — a list
  16. game — a match
  17. file — a tool
  18. hand — in cards
  19. face — part of the head
  20. file — a line of people
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. drill — army training
  23. mug — a face
  24. hand — part of the body

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