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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. key — for a lock
  4. key — the most important part
  5. shower — to wash
  6. chip — for betting
  7. lean — thin
  8. file — a document
  9. key — in music
  10. ground — crushed
  11. file — a tool
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. drill — army training
  15. chip — to eat
  16. dip — to sink
  17. lean — to bend
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — a practice
  20. shower — rain
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. ground — the earth
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. ground — a position

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