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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. file — a document
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. date — the fruit
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. file — a tool
  10. ground — crushed
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. file — a line of people
  14. ground — the earth
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. mine — for digging
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. deal — to handle
  22. vault — a safe
  23. ground — a position
  24. kick — in football

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