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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. file — a line of people
  4. shower — rain
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bank — for money
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. mug — a face
  11. file — a tool
  12. last — final
  13. bank — for money
  14. club — a group
  15. club — for dancing
  16. shower — to wash
  17. bank — of a river
  18. cell — in biology
  19. mug — a cup
  20. file — a document
  21. last — to go on
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. last — finally
  24. club — for golf

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