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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. file — a tool
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. scale — in music
  8. snap — to click
  9. date — the fruit
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. file — a document
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mate — a friend
  17. scale — size or range
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. tube — a container
  21. mate — to breed
  22. tube — the underground
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. file — a line of people

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