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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bank — of a river
  4. tube — the underground
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. bank — for money
  8. squash — the sport
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. squash — to crush
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bank — for money
  14. file — a document
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. file — a line of people
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. tube — a container
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. swing — music

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