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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. file — a tool
  3. last — to go on
  4. fine — all right
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. file — a document
  8. board — to get on
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. hand — help
  12. file — a line of people
  13. hand — in cards
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. board — a committee
  16. scale — in music
  17. last — finally
  18. roll — a cake
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. last — final
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. fine — high quality

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