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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. hand — help
  3. shower — to wash
  4. file — a tool
  5. capital — money
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. file — a line of people
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. bass — low music
  10. net — for catching
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. net — after costs
  14. shower — rain
  15. bass — the fish
  16. capital — a city
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. hand — in cards
  19. stand — to bear
  20. net — in sport
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — thin
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. lean — to rest against

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