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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. content — happy
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. vault — a safe
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. content — the amount
  10. tear — to rip
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. fork — in a road
  15. tear — from crying
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. perch — the fish
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. perch — for a bird

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