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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. kick — in football
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. vault — a safe
  10. fall — the season
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. prune — to trim
  14. file — a document
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. fall — to drop
  18. sharp — clever
  19. file — a tool
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. sharp — exactly

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