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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. file — a tool
  4. spell — magic
  5. saw — the tool
  6. file — a document
  7. spell — letters
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. saw — the tool
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. lie — to recline
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — in biology
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. can — a tin
  17. file — a line of people
  18. spell — a short time
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — for betting
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — to be able to
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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