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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. net — after costs
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. row — to paddle
  5. rash — a series
  6. file — a tool
  7. tube — a container
  8. file — a line of people
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rash — hasty
  11. staff — employees
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. tube — the underground
  14. staff — employees
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. rest — a break
  17. date — the fruit
  18. net — in sport
  19. file — a document
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. net — for catching
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. staff — a stick
  24. rest — what's left

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