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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. file — a document
  3. march — the month
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — tied together
  7. file — a line of people
  8. march — the month
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. row — to paddle
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bound — obliged
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. toast — bread
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. file — a tool
  19. march — music
  20. row — a line
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a tree

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