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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 116 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. sharp — clever
  4. charge — a price
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. charge — electricity
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. bark — to shout
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. file — a line of people
  12. charge — in control
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. file — a document
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. mine — for digging
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. snap — to click
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. fork — in a road

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