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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. scale — in music
  3. ground — crushed
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. can — to be able to
  7. ground — the earth
  8. can — a tin
  9. hand — in cards
  10. present — there
  11. can — a tin
  12. present — the time now
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. file — a document
  15. ground — a position
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. scale — size or range
  21. present — a gift
  22. file — a line of people
  23. hand — help
  24. mine — for digging

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