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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. file — a document
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. file — a tool
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. file — a line of people
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. squash — the sport
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. squash — to crush
  12. date — the fruit
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bound — certain
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. bound — obliged
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — a phone
  21. sharp — clever
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. date — on the calendar

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