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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. file — a document
  5. charge — electricity
  6. stem — to come from
  7. swing — music
  8. charge — in control
  9. swing — in golf
  10. mine — for digging
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. file — a tool
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. charge — a price
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. kid — child
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. swing — to play on
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. cabinet — ministers

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