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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. net — for catching
  3. tube — a container
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. spring — the season
  7. pop — soda
  8. spring — of water
  9. file — a line of people
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. fall — to drop
  12. spring — a coil
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. pop — to visit
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. fall — the season
  18. file — a tool
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. fall — to drop
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. pop — music
  23. wake — a trail
  24. tube — the underground

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