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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. field — for sport
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. file — a tool
  7. shower — to wash
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — hurry
  11. field — farmland
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. file — a document
  15. shower — rain
  16. wake — a trail
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. field — a subject
  24. wake — before a funeral

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