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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 120 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. dip — to sink
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. file — a tool
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. fine — all right
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. wake — a trail
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. snap — to click
  16. fine — high quality
  17. file — a document
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bat — the animal
  24. pound — a weight

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