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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 120 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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. scale — in music
  7. file — a document
  8. scale — size or range
  9. track — a path
  10. face — part of the head
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. present — there
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. track — a song
  16. face — to confront
  17. present — a gift
  18. file — a line of people
  19. face — to point toward
  20. present — the time now
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. track — to keep track
  24. file — a tool

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