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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. ground — crushed
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. file — a document
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. fall — the season
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. mate — a partner
  9. file — a line of people
  10. tube — the underground
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. fall — to drop
  13. ground — a position
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. mate — a friend
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. tube — a container
  19. ground — the earth
  20. file — a tool
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. mate — to breed
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. fall — to drop

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