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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. file — a tool
  3. track — a song
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. file — a document
  6. track — a path
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. file — a line of people
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — hasty
  15. present — a gift
  16. pitch — completely
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. present — the time now
  21. track — to keep track
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bowl — to roll

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