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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. scale — size or range
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. file — a line of people
  6. scale — in music
  7. hand — help
  8. file — a document
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. stand — to bear
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pop — music
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. file — a tool
  16. bat — the animal
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pop — soda
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — in cards

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