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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. kick — in football
  7. file — a document
  8. scale — in music
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. file — a line of people
  12. file — a tool
  13. pitch — completely
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. row — to paddle
  18. saw — the tool
  19. row — a line
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a ring
  22. saw — the tool
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. scale — size or range

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