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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. rest — what's left
  4. present — a gift
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. fine — high quality
  9. rest — a break
  10. present — there
  11. file — a line of people
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. present — the time now
  15. file — a document
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. file — a tool
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fine — all right
  22. degree — from a university
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. degree — an amount

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