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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. file — a tool
  3. date — the fruit
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. drill — the tool
  7. cap — a hat
  8. pound — a weight
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. bass — the fish
  11. file — a document
  12. drill — army training
  13. pit — a hole
  14. fork — in a road
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. cap — a lid
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bass — low music
  22. cap — of ice
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. date — on the calendar

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