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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. rest — what's left
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. wind — moving air
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. rest — a break
  9. season — of the year
  10. rest — what's left
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. season — in sport
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. net — after costs
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — for betting
  18. spell — a short time
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a line of people
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — magic
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — in sport

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