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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. present — a gift
  3. rule — a law
  4. file — a tool
  5. present — the time now
  6. hand — in cards
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — a face
  13. rule — government
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. kid — child
  18. perch — the fish
  19. hand — help
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. mug — to rob
  23. present — there
  24. file — a document

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