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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. file — a line of people
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. file — a tool
  5. spell — magic
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. stem — to come from
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. rash — hasty
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. file — a document
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. rash — a series

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