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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. net — after costs
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — what's left
  5. file — a line of people
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. snap — to click
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — in sport
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. rest — a break
  17. lean — to bend
  18. file — a document
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. rule — government
  21. lean — thin
  22. rule — a law
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. rule — to rule out

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