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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. file — a tool
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bat — the animal
  6. clip — to cut
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. pitch — completely
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. capital — a city
  13. file — a line of people
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. clip — a video
  20. capital — money
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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