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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. swing — to play on
  3. last — final
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. last — to go on
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. file — a tool
  11. swing — music
  12. pitch — completely
  13. file — a document
  14. swing — in golf
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. last — finally
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the 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