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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. band — a music group
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. row — a line
  6. row — to paddle
  7. field — a subject
  8. file — a document
  9. field — for sport
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. file — a tool
  14. wax — to grow
  15. field — farmland
  16. mine — for digging
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. saw — the tool
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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