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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. file — a line of people
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. court — for sport
  6. rest — a break
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. file — a tool
  10. tube — a container
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. tube — the underground
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rest — what's left
  18. scale — size or range
  19. rest — what's left
  20. file — a document
  21. scale — in music
  22. court — of a king
  23. lie — to recline
  24. tube — in a tire

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