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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 120 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. chip — to eat
  3. fine — high quality
  4. file — a line of people
  5. fine — all right
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. file — a document
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. chair — a leader
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. fall — to drop
  15. file — a tool
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. tear — to rip
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. chip — for betting
  20. fall — to drop
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — from crying
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. fall — the season

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