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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. spring — the season
  3. file — a tool
  4. club — a group
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. file — a line of people
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — for dancing
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. pit — in a race
  11. row — a line
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. file — a document
  15. row — to paddle
  16. spring — of water
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — a tool
  20. spring — a coil
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — soda
  24. jam — in traffic

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