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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. object — to protest
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. file — a document
  6. row — a line
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. file — a tool
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. object — an aim
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. bound — tied together
  16. file — a line of people
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bound — obliged
  20. row — to paddle
  21. chip — for betting
  22. object — a thing
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. bound — certain

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