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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. chip — to eat
  3. roll — a cake
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. ground — crushed
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. can — a tin
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. file — a line of people
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — a position
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. file — a tool
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. roll — a list
  22. fork — in a road
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. chip — for betting

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