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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. capital — a city
  4. rock — music
  5. bass — low music
  6. pitch — completely
  7. staff — employees
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bass — the fish
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. tube — a container
  16. capital — money
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. rock — a stone
  19. staff — employees
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. tube — the underground
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. staff — a stick

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