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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 120 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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. file — a tool
  5. spring — the season
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wound — an injury
  8. ground — crushed
  9. current — electric
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. net — after costs
  14. spring — of water
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. ground — the earth
  18. spring — a coil
  19. current — of water
  20. file — a line of people
  21. current — happening now
  22. wound — an injury
  23. ground — a position
  24. racket — a loud noise

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