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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  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. straw — dry grass
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. spell — a short time
  4. file — a document
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. shower — rain
  7. cap — a lid
  8. track — a path
  9. tube — a container
  10. track — to keep track
  11. deal — to handle
  12. spell — letters
  13. cap — of ice
  14. track — a song
  15. spell — magic
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. tube — the underground
  18. shower — to wash
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a line of people
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. cap — a hat
  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