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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. can — a tin
  3. current — of water
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. net — after costs
  7. file — a line of people
  8. chest — a box
  9. current — electric
  10. march — the month
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. current — happening now
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. march — the month
  15. net — in sport
  16. file — a tool
  17. chest — of your body
  18. can — to be able to
  19. chest — of your body
  20. net — for catching
  21. field — farmland
  22. can — a tin
  23. march — music
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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