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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 116 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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. file — a document
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. ground — crushed
  5. file — a line of people
  6. content — the amount
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. file — a tool
  9. content — happy
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. mark — a grade
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bound — tied together
  15. drill — a practice
  16. mark — a trace
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. ground — a position
  19. bound — obliged
  20. drill — army training
  21. bound — certain
  22. drill — the tool
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wax — in the ear

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