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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 ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. file — a document
  3. saw — the tool
  4. stock — shares
  5. club — for dancing
  6. saw — the tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. wound — an injury
  9. court — for sport
  10. stock — goods
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. last — to go on
  13. club — a group
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. club — for golf
  17. last — final
  18. court — of law
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. court — of a king
  22. wound — an injury
  23. last — finally
  24. file — a tool

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