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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. mug — to rob
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — a thing
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. file — a tool
  12. object — an aim
  13. dip — to sink
  14. mug — a cup
  15. file — a line of people
  16. mug — a face
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. file — a document
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. saw — the tool
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. plane — 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