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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. ground — the earth
  3. file — a line of people
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. shower — to wash
  6. file — a tool
  7. pound — a weight
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. deal — to handle
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. ground — crushed
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. wax — to grow
  15. scale — size or range
  16. ground — a position
  17. stem — to come from
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. scale — in music
  24. shower — rain

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