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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. file — a line of people
  4. key — for a lock
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. file — a document
  7. row — a line
  8. ground — crushed
  9. wound — an injury
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. key — the most important part
  13. ground — a position
  14. foot — a measure
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. key — in music
  17. ground — the earth
  18. file — a tool
  19. row — to paddle
  20. wake — a trail
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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