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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 116 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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. file — a document
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. spring — the season
  6. band — a music group
  7. bark — to shout
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. band — a ring
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. wind — moving air
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a line of people
  15. plane — a tool
  16. wind — moving air
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. kick — in football
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. spring — of water
  24. ruler — for measuring

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