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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 116 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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. file — a document
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. hand — help
  6. rule — a law
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. bulb — for light
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. mine — for digging
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. file — a tool
  23. rule — government
  24. mine — an explosive

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