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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. pop — music
  3. cell — a phone
  4. file — a document
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. file — a line of people
  9. face — to point toward
  10. cell — in biology
  11. face — part of the head
  12. season — of the year
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. season — in sport
  19. pop — soda
  20. deal — to handle
  21. face — to confront
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. pop — to visit
  24. trunk — of a tree

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