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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 116 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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. rash — hasty
  3. scale — size or range
  4. cell — a phone
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. file — a line of people
  8. land — a country
  9. land — to come down
  10. rash — a series
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — wild animals
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. game — a match
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. mug — a face
  18. mug — a cup
  19. mug — to rob
  20. file — a document
  21. cell — in biology
  22. land — ground
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. file — a tool

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