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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. file — a document
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. file — a line of people
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. file — a tool
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. vault — a safe
  13. clip — to cut
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. row — to paddle
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — for paper
  22. snap — to click
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. row — a line

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