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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. game — a match
  5. rush — hurry
  6. rock — a stone
  7. squash — the sport
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — to point toward
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. game — wild animals
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. rock — music
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. face — part of the head
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. file — a document
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. mark — a grade
  24. squash — to crush

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