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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. rash — a series
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. lean — to bend
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rash — hasty
  7. key — the most important part
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bat — the animal
  10. lean — thin
  11. file — a line of people
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. key — for a lock
  15. file — a document
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. plane — a tool
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. branch — a division
  23. file — a tool
  24. bowl — a football final

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