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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. game — a match
  4. file — a tool
  5. scale — size or range
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. prune — to trim
  11. file — a line of people
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. root — of a word
  14. root — the cause
  15. file — a document
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. prune — to trim
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. swing — in golf
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. game — wild animals
  22. swing — music
  23. swing — to play on
  24. root — of a plant

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