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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 120 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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. file — a document
  3. file — a tool
  4. spring — the season
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. spell — magic
  10. firm — steady
  11. firm — decided
  12. charge — electricity
  13. net — for catching
  14. spring — of water
  15. field — farmland
  16. spell — letters
  17. charge — in control
  18. firm — a company
  19. march — the month
  20. file — a line of people
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spring — a coil
  23. net — after costs
  24. charge — a price

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